Reading level, acuity, and speed evaluation among retinoblastoma survivors: A prospective case series

Pediatric retinoblastoma survivors exhibit visual deficits. How these visual deficits impact reading skills is unknown. The purpose of this study is to assess reading level, reading acuity, and reading speed among retinoblastoma survivors. Parents of English-speaking retinoblastoma survivors between ages of 8 and 17 consented/assented to participate. Children completed MNRead for reading speed and reading acuity. The Gray Oral Reading Test-Fifth Edition (GORT) was administered to assess reading rate, accuracy, fluency, and comprehension. Five children participated in the study. Two out of five participants fell within the “Below Average” range on the GORT while 3/5 were “Average”. One participant with below average performance ranked below average in all four subtests, while the other participant was below average in accuracy and comprehension only. On the MNRead, all five participants had slower maximum reading speeds and worse reading acuity than the baseline measure for their age. Four out of five participants had a higher (i,e., worse) CPS than their expected baseline measure, suggesting that these individuals may require larger print or higher magnification than their peers to achieve effortless reading. These findings suggest that retinoblastoma survivors may experience reading difficulties. Characterizing the reading challenges in retinoblastoma survivors will be critical in advancing interventions to optimize educational attainment in this population.