Eye Cancer is Rare, But The Symptoms Are Not Always Obvious; Know What to Look For

This type of cancer is rare in the U.K.; it is also rare in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society, with just 3,360 cases of eye cancer expected to be diagnosed in 2022. And while rare, this cancer is also melanoma (skin cancer) most of the time, but more on that later.

Signs & Symptoms

It is important to know the symptoms of eye cancer, according to Cancer Research UK, as the symptoms are not always obvious; the symptoms are "more likely" to be caught during a routine eye exam. Possible eye cancer symptoms include:

• Bulging of one eye
• Complete or partial loss of sight
• Pain in or around the eye (rare with eye cancer)
• Pale, raised lump on the surface of the eye (the conjunctiva or cornea)
• Blurred vision
• Change in the appearance of the eye
• Lump on the eyelids or around the eye
• Seeing spots or flashes of light or wiggly lines in front of your eyes
• Blinkered vision (loss of peripheral vision); you can see what is straight ahead clearly, but not what is at the sides
• Dark spot on the colored part of the eye (the iris) that is getting bigger
• Eye irritation, red eye or chronic inflammation of the conjunctiva (conjunctivitis)

While eye cancer symptoms are typically caught during routine eye examinations, if you experience any of the aforementioned symptoms, seek medical attention from your primary care doctor or an optometrist (a health care professional trained to examine the eye).

"The earlier a cancer is picked up, the easier it is to treat it," Cancer Research UK reports. "This makes it more likely for the treatment to be successful."

Related: 'Fox & Friends' Host Steve Doocy Says Wife's Decision to Get New Sunglasses Saved Her Life; Shares Emotional Journey to Treat Her Eye Cancer

Understanding Eye Cancer

The term eye cancer can refer to any cancer that originates in the eye. Most cancers of the eye and orbit in adults are melanomas (called ocular melanoma), according to ACS, but this cancer starts more often in other parts of the body. (More than nine out of 10 melanomas start in the skin.)

The Sun is Not Your Friend: Most Melanomas Are Caused by Sun Exposure

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Mass., reports that about 2,500 adults are diagnosed with ocular melanoma each year. Their Ocular Melanoma Center also reports that most ocular melanomas can be difficult to detect because they occur in a part of the eye that cannot be seen.

However, when symptoms do arise, they can appear as a dark spot on the iris or conjunctiva, blurred or distorted vision, a blind spot in your side vision or the sensation of flashing lights; similar to the list of symptoms Cancer Research UK outlined.

"In most cases, these are tumors that are detected upon a routine sight test by your optometrist or your ophthalmologist," Dr. Rizwan Haq, director of the Ocular Melanoma Center at Dana-Farber, said in a video for the center. "Most patients do not experience symptoms when they have a diagnosis of ocular melanoma."

Contributing: Abby Seaberg

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