eye cancer

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Eye cancer – what are the signs, symptoms and treatments of eye cancer?

Eye cancer

Eye cancer

Between 500 and 600 cases of eye cancer (ocular cancer) are diagnosed in the UK each year.

There are a number of different types of cancer that affect the eyes, including:

eye melanoma

squamous cell carcinoma

lymphoma

retinoblastoma – a childhood cancer

Cancer can also sometimes develop in the tissues surrounding your eyeball or spread to the eye from other parts of the body, such as the lungs or breasts.

This topic focuses on melanoma of the eye, one of the most common types of eye cancer. The Cancer Research UK website has more information about the other types of eye cancer.

 

Symptoms of eye cancer

Eye cancer doesn’t always cause obvious symptoms and may only be picked up during a routine eye test.

Symptoms of eye cancer can include:

shadows, flashes of light, or wiggly lines in your vision

blurred vision

a dark patch in your eye that’s getting bigger

partial or total loss of vision

bulging of one eye

a lump on your eyelid or in your eye that’s increasing in size

pain in or around your eye, although this is rare

These symptoms can also be caused by more minor eye conditions, so they’re not necessarily a sign of cancer. However, it’s important to get the symptoms checked by a doctor as soon as possible.

Melanoma of the eye

Melanoma is cancer that develops from pigment-producing cells called melanocytes. Most melanomas develop in the skin, but it’s also possible for them to occur in other parts of the body, including the eye.

Eye melanoma most commonly affects the eyeball. Doctors sometimes call it uveal or choroidal melanoma, depending on exactly which part of your eye is affected.

It can also affect the conjunctiva, the thin layer that covers the front of the eye, or the eyelid.

What causes eye melanoma?

Eye melanoma occurs when the pigment-producing cells in the eyes divide and multiply too rapidly. This produces a lump of tissue known as a tumour.

It’s not clear exactly why this occurs, but the following factors may increase the risk of it happening:

lighter eye colour – if you have blue, grey or green eyes, you have a higher risk of developing eye melanoma compared with people who have brown eyes

white or pale skin – eye melanoma mostly affects white people and is more common in those with fair skin

unusual moles – if you have irregularly shaped or unusually coloured moles, you’re more at risk of developing skin cancer and eye melanoma

use of sunbeds – there’s some evidence to suggest that exposing yourself to ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sunbeds, for example, can increase your risk of eye melanoma

overexposure to sunlight – this increases your risk of skin cancer, and may also be a risk factor for eye melanoma

The risk of developing eye melanoma also increases with age, with most cases being diagnosed in people in their 50s.

Read about the risk factors for other types of eye cancer on the Cancer Research UK website.

Diagnosing melanoma of the eye

If your GP or optician (optometrist) suspects you have a serious problem with your eyes, they will refer you to a specialist eye doctor called an ophthalmologist for an assessment.

If they suspect you have melanoma of the eye, they’ll refer you to a specialist centre for eye cancer. There are four centres in the UK, located in London, Sheffield, Liverpool, and Glasgow.

It’s likely you’ll have a number of different tests at the centre, including:

an eye examination – to look at the structures of your eyes in more detail and check for abnormalities

an ultrasound scan of your eye – a small probe placed over your closed eye uses high-frequency sound waves to create an image of the inside of your eye; this allows your doctor to find out more about the position of the tumour and its size

a fluorescein angiogram – where photographs of the suspected cancer are taken using a special camera after dye has been injected into your bloodstream to highlight the tumour

Occasionally, a thin needle may be used to remove a small sample of cells from the tumour (biopsy). The genetic information in these cells is analysed to give an indication of the chances of the cancer spreading or coming back.

Treatments for eye melanoma

Treatment for melanoma of the eye depends on the size and location of the tumour. Your care team will explain each treatment option in detail, including the benefits and any potential complications.

Treatment will aim to conserve the affected eye whenever possible.

The main treatments for eye melanoma are:

brachytherapy – tiny plates lined with radioactive material called plaques are inserted near the tumour and left in place for up to a week to kill the cancerous cells

external radiotherapy – a machine is used to carefully aim beams of radiation at the tumour to kill the cancerous cells

surgery to remove the tumour or part of the eye – this may be possible if the tumour is small and you still have some vision in your eye

removal of the eye (enucleation) – this may be necessary if the tumour is large or you’ve lost your vision; the eye will eventually be replaced with an artificial eye that matches your other eye

Chemotherapy is rarely used for eye melanoma, but may be suitable for other types of eye cancer.

The Cancer Research UK website has more information about the treatment options for eye cancer and the types of eye cancer surgery.

Outlook for eye melanoma

The outlook for melanoma of the eye depends on how big the cancer is at the time it’s diagnosed and exactly which parts of the eye are affected.

Overall:

about 8 out of every 10 people (80%) diagnosed with a small eye melanoma will live for at least five years after diagnosis

about 7 out of every 10 people (70%) diagnosed with a medium-sized eye melanoma will live for at least five years after diagnosis

about 5 out of every 10 people (50%) diagnosed with a large eye melanoma will live for at least five years after diagnosis

The Cancer Research UK website has more information about the stages of eye cancer and statistics and outlook for eye cancer.

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Eye cancer – Do You Know the Signs of Ocular Melanoma?

Melanoma is a particular kind of cancer — one that develops in the cells that produce the pigment which colors your skin, hair, and eyes. It most commonly develops in the skin, but in rare instances, it can develop in the eyes, as well.

Do You Know the Signs of Ocular Melanoma?

Do You Know the Signs of Ocular Melanoma?


The form of melanoma that develops in the eyes, known as ocular melanoma, is the most common cancer of the eye in adults. According to the Ocular Melanoma Foundation, it is diagnosed in approximately 2,500 adults every year in the United States. People with light skin and eye colors, and people over 50 years of age are at the greatest risk, but all races or ages can develop ocular melanoma.


As with many other cancers, ocular melanoma, or OM, is malignant, meaning if left untreated it can metastasize, or spread to other parts of the body. Once this happens, OM becomes much more difficult to control, and is often fatal.

As with many cancers, OM is not well-understood. It can grow in the uveal tract, which comprises three areas of the eye: the iris, the ciliary body, and the choroid uvea. The iris is the colored part of the eye. It is the least likely to be the origin of OM, but often gives the best prognosis. The choroid uvea is an area filled with blood vessels between the retina and the white part of the eye, and the part of the eye where melanoma is more likely to form. The ciliary body, which produces the aqueous humor inside the eye, is less likely, but OM can occur in any of these parts, or sometimes more than one simultaneously.

The Signs of Ocular Melanoma

Unfortunately, sometimes OM can develop without any overt symptoms. The signs you should watch for include:

  • Loss of peripheral vision, or loss of vision in the center of the eye
  • Blurred or fuzzy vision in one eye
  • Seeing specks floating in your field of vision
  • The sensation of flashing lights
  • A change in the shape of your pupil (the dark circle in the center) of your eye
  • A dark spot in the iris (colored part) of your eye that seems to be increasing in size
  • Glaucoma (high pressure inside the eye). A painful, red eye, often with blurred vision can be a sign not only of glaucoma, but of OM.
  • The first sign is sometimes the development of cancer in other parts of the body, like the bones, lungs, or liver.

The often hidden nature of OM is yet another reason to get a comprehensive eye exam every year just to be certain everything is okay with your eyes. Of course, if you have any of the above symptoms, you should see a doctor at any point of the year. Sudden changes in vision are always a sign for a visit to a medical professional.

On certain occasions, your doctor may not see the need to treat a small eye melanoma immediately, if it doesn’t seem to be growing. Once it is clearly growing, or begins to cause complications, it may be time to begin treatment.

Treatments for Ocular Melanoma

As with other forms of cancer, there are a number of methods used to treat OM, some of them fairly specific to this type of melanoma.

Surgery is often used to remove small melanomas, just as with other types of tumors. The melanoma is cut away, along with a small bit of healthy tissue, in the hope the tumor will not grow back. When the melanoma is larger or is causing the patient great pain, sometimes the entire eye has to be removed, and eventually replaced with a prosthetic eye, which is colored to look like the original eye.

Radiation therapy uses proton rays or gamma rays to kill cancer cells. This is best used for smaller or medium sized melanomas. Often, the radiation is administered by putting a radioactive object directly over the tumor itself, secured by temporary stitches. This object is held over the eye for several days before being removed.

Radiation can also be administered through actual beams directly into the eye, over a process that usually takes several days.

Lasers are often used to cut even more finely than a scalpel, and can sometimes be used to kill tumors. A special kind of infrared laser is sometimes used along with radiation therapy to treat OM.

Cryotherapy, or treatment using extreme cold, is a rare way to treat small eye melanomas.

As with any form of cancer, the best course is always to find it and treat it as soon as possible. Get regular checkups, both with your eye doctor and with your general doctor to make sure your eyes, and the rest of you, are as healthy as they can possibly be.

 

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Laura O’Donnell writes smart content on behalf of the eye doctors at EyeCare 20/20. As an avid writer and learner, she loves to use her skills for engaging others in important topics in creative and effective ways. When she is not working, she loves meeting new people, traveling, and bringing her Pinterest dreams to life. Find her on LinkedIn.