A First‑of‑Its‑Kind Cancer Treatment at Oklahoma Children’s Protects a Baby’s Sight and Future

When Jennifer Stumpff noticed her 10-month-old son’s right eye suddenly drift outward one afternoon, she assumed it was a simple muscle issue and that little Lincoln might need an eye patch to strengthen it. But when their pediatrician immediately referred them to a specialist without even examining Lincoln’s eye, Jennifer’s concern deepened.

At the ophthalmologist’s office, the exam took only moments before Jennifer was asked to call her husband, Ryland. Moments later, the couple heard the words no parent ever expects: Your son has cancer. Lincoln, a member of the Osage Nation belonging to the Thunder Clan, was diagnosed with retinoblastoma, a rare pediatric eye cancer that affects only a few hundred children in the United State each year.

“It was one of the hardest moments of my life,” Jennifer said.

A Rare but Treatable Cancer

Retinoblastoma develops in the retina — the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye that sends visual signals to the brain. In most infants, retinal cells mature and stop dividing after early development. In retinoblastoma, a genetic mutation causes those cells to grow uncontrollably, forming a tumor.

Because the disease usually appears before age 5, early detection is critical. Left untreated, it can spread along the optic nerve and into the brain. In Lincoln’s case, imaging and genetic testing confirmed a sporadic, one-eye form of the disease rather than an inherited mutation. As it was caught early enough, there was real hope of saving both his vision and his eye.

Bringing World-Class Treatment Home to Oklahoma

Lincoln was referred to Oklahoma Children’s OU Health, where pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. Michael Feldman, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, and a multidisciplinary team reviewed his case.

Rather than using traditional intravenous chemotherapy, which floods the whole body with toxic medication, Dr. Feldman and his colleagues recommended a highly targeted approach called intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC).

“In a baby, systemic chemotherapy can be incredibly toxic,” Dr. Feldman explained. “Their bodies simply aren’t built to handle that amount of chemotherapy. Instead, we go directly to the artery that supplies the retina — the ophthalmic artery — and deliver a concentrated dose straight to the tumor. It’s cleaner, safer, and far more effective.”

During the procedure, Dr. Feldman inserted a catheter into an artery in Lincoln’s groin and carefully guided it up through the arterial system to reach the ophthalmic artery, which branches off the carotid artery. Once in position, a precisely measured dose of chemotherapy was infused directly into the artery feeding the tumor.

However, Lincoln’s anatomy made it difficult for Dr. Feldman to reach the ophthalmic artery directly. Instead, he used an alternate method placing a balloon catheter just past the branch in the carotid artery.

“That balloon temporarily blocked blood flow, rerouting everything into the artery that goes to the eye,” Dr. Feldman said. “When we injected the chemotherapy behind the balloon, it was carried straight to the tumor, with none going into the brain.”

The entire treatment takes about 30 minutes, though extensive coordination and preparation are required. The work involves a pediatric anesthesia team, interventional radiology, pharmacy staff who prepare the drug within hours of use, and coordination with ophthalmology and oncology.

“It’s a highly choreographed process,” Dr. Feldman said. “If the timing is off, the chemotherapy can’t be used. Everyone — anesthesia, pharmacy, oncology — has to be completely in sync.”

A Safer, More Precise Way to Treat Cancer

IAC allows for much higher drug concentrations than standard chemotherapy which travels through the whole body, with far fewer side effects. Because the medication goes directly to the tumor, healthy tissues and organs are largely spared.

“The toxicity, when this goes smoothly, is minimal,” Dr. Feldman said. “Children may get some eye swelling or lose a few eyelashes, but this is such a cleaner therapy for them — a better approach to treating the tumor than systemic chemotherapy.”

Jennifer saw the results almost immediately.

“They told us Lincoln might have swelling or discoloration afterward,” she said. “But he barely had any. After the first round, the tumor had already shrunk by 50%, and by the second it was down 85%. It was incredible.”

The First in Oklahoma

Lincoln was the first child in Oklahoma to receive IAC for retinoblastoma. Before OU Health developed this capability, families had to travel to large centers in other states for the same procedure.

Lincoln’s treatment involved three initial cycles spaced about four weeks apart. After every session, he stayed overnight for observation, then returned home the next day. Between treatments, an ocular oncologist and pathologist performed eye exams under anesthesia to monitor progress. Any remaining “seeds” (tiny fragments of tumor that can break away and regrow) were destroyed with cryotherapy, a freezing technique performed during those follow-up exams.

“He’s the first case in Oklahoma, and he’s a success story,” Jennifer said. “Dr. Feldman told us if he couldn’t start treatment within two weeks, he would personally send us out of state. He wasn’t going to risk waiting. He truly fought for our son.”

Dr. Feldman said the collaborative team stands ready to offer this treatment to other Oklahoma children.

“This isn’t something one person can do alone,” he said. “It takes coordination between ophthalmology, oncology, neurosurgery, radiology, pharmacy and anesthesia. We’ve built that team here and now that we’ve done it once, we’re ready to do it again.”

A Team That Felt Like Family

Each visit to Oklahoma Children’s brought reassurance and compassion.

“We were treated like family,” Jennifer said. “Everyone, from the nurses to the specialists, knew us by name and explained every step. It made a terrifying situation so much easier.”

Today, Lincoln is a thriving toddler. His tumor is calcified and inactive, and his chance of recurrence is less than 2%. He continues regular follow-up exams with OU Health specialists to ensure continued remission.

“He plays, he laughs, and he can see,” Jennifer said. “We thank God and the doctors every day.”

A New Era of Pediatric Cancer Care

Lincoln’s recovery marks a major step forward for children in Oklahoma diagnosed with retinoblastoma. The availability of IAC at OU Health means families no longer need to travel across the country for this sight-saving treatment.

“We live in Ramona, two hours from Oklahoma City,” Jennifer said. “If OU Health hadn’t been able to do this, we would have had to go out of state. I can’t imagine how hard that would’ve been. Dr. Feldman worked so hard to make sure Lincoln got the care he needed right here. We’ll always be grateful for that.”

With advanced technology, specialized training, and coordinated multidisciplinary care, Oklahoma Children’s continues to expand what’s possible for Oklahoma’s youngest patients, giving families like the Stumpffs a bright future.

Oklahoma Children’s OU Health is home to more pediatric experts than anywhere else in Oklahoma, supported by the clinical care, research and education that forms the backbone of an academic health system.

Learn more about pediatric neurosciences and cancer care at Oklahoma Children’s or call (405) 271-2222.