Escaping Eye Cancer
You have blurry vision. Sometimes you have a blind spot in your peripheral vision. You may have a type of eye cancer known as ocular melanoma.
Ocular melanoma is the most common cancer in the eye among adults. It arises from cells that produce pigments which give color to the skin, hair and eye.
Like melanoma of the skin, there are ocular melanomas inside the eye and on the surface of the eye. Most ocular melanomas are intraocular or inside the eyes so they are difficult to detect by self-examination. In the early stages, they seldom have any symptoms. As the melanoma grows, it may cause blurry vision, distorted vision or a blind spot in the peripheral vision.
Sometimes the eye may experience flashes of light. There may be a change in the color of the iris or the shape of the pupil. Melanoma of the conjunctiva which is a rare form of melanoma, appears as a brown or dark spot on the transparent surface of the eye.
The intraocular melanoma is diagnosed with a dilated eye examination. Because of lack of signs and symptoms, many melanomas are discovered during routine eye examination so it is important to see your ophthalmologist regularly.
Patients with suspected melanomas are usually referred to an ocular oncologist, an ophthalmologist who specializes in the diagnoses and management of eye cancers. Primary intraocular melanoma is a cancer that affects the white blood cells and starts inside the eye.
Most patients with lymphoma of the eye are elderly or immunocompromised. The common symptoms for eye lymphoma include blurry vision, floaters, light sensitivity, redness and swelling of the eye.
Retinoblastoma is a rare form of childhood eye cancer. It is the most common and life-threatening eye cancer in children, less than 5 years of age. In an eye with retinoblastoma the pupil looks white when light shines in the eye. The eye may be swollen, red and wanders.
It is caused when the child inherits or acquires a mutation of a gene that suppresses tumor growth. At its earliest stages, retinoblastoma symptoms can be very subtle. When diagnosed early, there is a good chance of both vision and eyeball preservation. In some cases, when diagnosed late, the eyeball might have to be removed to prevent the spread of cancer to the whole body.
The eyelids can have skin cancers such as basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and skin melanoma. The oil glands and tear glands in the eyelids can develop into cancers.
Cancers can be found in the orbit behind the eyeball. The eye may protrude outward. There may be pressure sensation, double vision or blurry vision.
There are many advances in the diagnoses and treatments of eye cancers. In the majority of ocular cancers, a patient can expect successful control of the cancer, preservation of visual function, and survival of the eye.
Children who have inherited genetic mutations have a high chance of developing cancer in other parts of the body as well, hence regular follow-ups and screenings are vital.
