CHICAGO – September 23, 2025 – For the first time at Northwestern Medicine, doctors have successfully treated a patient with uveal melanoma — a rare form of eye cancer — using Hepzato Kit, an FDA-approved therapy that delivers chemotherapy directly to the liver. The treatment option could help patients with stage 4 uveal melanoma live longer by shrinking tumors that have spread to the liver and can not be removed surgically.

“This type of therapy has been shown to prolong survival for patients while also offering a very tolerable side effect profile, which are two things we want to prioritize,” said Sunandana Chandra, MD, medical director for melanoma and cutaneous oncology with the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. “It’s especially meaningful to have a therapy that helps us maintain a good quality of life for patients as we navigate a cancer that can be quite challenging to treat.”

On April 3, 66-year-old Bozena Wojtach of Niles, Ill., became the first patient at Northwestern Medicine to receive the new treatment. During the procedure, interventional radiologists use several small tubes to isolate the liver’s blood supply from the rest of the body before chemotherapy is directly administered to the liver for about 30 minutes. Once the chemotherapy is finished, the separated blood supply in the liver is filtered for an additional half hour before being returned to the patient’s body.

“This process removes more than 80% of the chemotherapy drug, significantly reducing the amount of chemotherapy that reaches other parts of the body,” said Robert Lewandowski, MD, director of interventional oncology at the Lurie Cancer Center at Northwestern Medicine. “While systemic chemotherapy targets widespread disease, this therapy is more effective for patients with the majority of their disease localized to the liver, as it minimizes overall toxicity.”

Originally from Cracow, Poland, Wojtach spent her youth flying planes and skydiving before pursuing a career in nursing. After immigrating to the United States in 1986 with her husband, Wojtach gave birth to twin sons and continued working as a nurse in the Chicago area, caring for cardiology, oncology and pediatric patients until her retirement in 2022.

In 2024, Wojtach began noticing flashing lights in her vision, which prompted a visit to her local optometrist. There, she learned that a mass had developed in her right eye and was referred to Northwestern Medicine ophthalmologist Randy Christopher Bowen, MD, who diagnosed her with uveal melanoma. While proton therapy was successful at treating her eye tumor, scans later revealed the cancer had spread to her liver, which is the most common site of spread for patients with uveal melanoma. If left untreated, liver tumors can continue to grow and may lead to liver failure.

Fortunately, the tumors affected less than half of her liver, making Wojtach a candidate for Hepzato Kit. If needed, patients may receive up to six cycles of the therapy, with treatment administered every six to eight weeks. However, after just two cycles, Wojtach’s tumors were reduced by more than 50 percent.

“I feel energetic and free of the pain and nausea that I saw in many patients receiving standard chemotherapy during my time as an oncology nurse,” said Wojtach. “I feel like I’m healthy – like I have no cancer at all.”

Due to her positive response, Wojtach’s medical team recommends she completes at least four cycles of the treatment. In the future, she hopes to continue traveling, working in her garden and spending time with her husband and adult sons.

“It has taken a big commitment from the health system and a significant team effort to bring this new therapy to patients,” said Dr. Lewandowski. “With collaboration from interventional radiology, medical oncology, anesthesia, perfusion, and many others, we are excited to provide new hope for patients who otherwise have limited options.”

Uveal melanoma is rare, accounting for about 5% of all melanoma cases in the U.S. Up to half of all patients with the eye cancer will develop metastatic disease, which can be life-threatening.

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