Unusual solitary metastasis of the ciliary body in renal cell carcinoma

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) usually metastasizes to the lung, liver, bone; ocular metastasis is uncommon. We describe a rare case of metachronous ciliary RCC metastasis in a 42-year-old man who had undergone left radical nephrectomy for conventional RCC (pT3aN0M0, G2 Fuhrman) 6 years earlier. Solitary metastasis of the left eye presented with inflammatory symptoms, but examination of the fundus and bulbar ultrasound revealed a small mass of the ciliary body. Initial radiotherapy was unsuccessful and definitive treatment consisted of ocular enucleation with radical result and no further evidence of local and distant disease. Ocular metastasis of RCC is rare, can appear years after treating the primary tumor and should not be excluded in RCC follow-up. As for other RCC solitary metastasis, the best option remains the radical surgical approach.