Eye melanoma does not hurt, but it can kill. With these tips you can prevent it

Malignant melanoma of the eye is diagnosed in thousands of Slovaks every year, and it is caused not only by genetics but also by aggressive solar radiation. The insidiousness of the disease lies in the fact that it can develop for years without any symptoms. In its early stages, eye melanoma does not hurt and need not restrict the patient in any way, but later it is one of the most aggressive tumours. However, there are several effective preventive measures in the fight against it.

In connection with solar radiation and the human body, people talk above all about its negative effect on our skin. Much less is said, however, about the fact that it can also be a cause of eye cancer. Yet intraocular melanoma is one of the most malignant tumours of all, and it is diagnosed in thousands of Slovaks every year.

It is dangerous mainly because in its early stages it does not hurt and has almost no symptoms. And it is usually detected only by chance, when the patient comes to an eye outpatient clinic because their eyesight has deteriorated.

Causes of eye melanoma

As recently as thirty years ago, melanoma in the eye was a rather rare eye disease. In recent decades, however, its incidence has risen rapidly, and it is now one of the very common diseases in Slovakia too. We can classify it among multifactorial eye diseases, since eye melanoma may be the result of several risk factors acting at the same time.
 

Lack of natural light

We spend a lot of time indoors under artificial lighting. Our eyes lack natural light and as a result they lack the natural pigmentation that can protect them. You can therefore reduce the risk of eye cancer by spending more time outdoors. Not to mention that spending time in nature has a beneficial effect on a person's overall health.
 

Solar radiation

Another risk factor is solar radiation. Protecting your eyes with sunglasses or at least with a cap or a hat against direct sunlight should be a matter of course, and not only on hot summer days.
 

Genetics

Genetics can also play a significant role. Eye melanoma most often affects the population over 45, but it is nothing unusual for it to appear in people over 25 as well. A group at greater risk are white people with light-coloured eyes and poorly developed pigment.

A tumour in the eye may start to show itself only in the late stages

Melanoma can appear on the outer part of the eye or inside it. The first case is somewhat better, since melanoma in the area of the eyelids and conjunctiva is visible already in the first stages.

Inside the eye, however, melanoma gradually grows from the layer of the retina, so for a very long time it tends to be truly inconspicuous and therefore dangerous. In some cases, no vision complications appear at all and the tumour in the eye grows unnoticed for several years. It happens that it is noticed only when it reaches a really large size and when eye pain or other ocular and non-ocular problems begin to appear.

This is because a tumour in the eye is malignant, which means that it causes damage not only in the area where it is located but throughout the body. In addition to damage to vision, which carries a risk of even complete loss of sight, it can also metastasise to the kidneys or the brain and damage them.

Eye melanoma can be cured

The chief ophthalmologist of the iClinic network MUDr. Ivo Ďurkovič, MPH says that eye melanoma can be treated: “Eye melanoma too can be treated, but everything depends on the health of the particular patient and on the stage the disease is at. Eye cancer is treated similarly to skin cancer: radiotherapy, chemotherapy or surgery is applied.“

In the past, melanoma was fought quite radically and the entire affected eye was removed. Today, a much gentler approach is taken, using laser eye surgery.
 
Another way of getting rid of a tumour in the eye is the application of a so-called plaque. This is a radioactive emitter approximately one centimetre in size, which gradually releases radiation into the eye that can not only stop the growth of the tumour in the eye but also destroy it completely.

Prevention is the basis of the fight against eye cancer

The basic and at the same time most important protection of your vision and eyes is preventive check-ups with an ophthalmologist. These can detect in time even asymptomatic diseases, which include eye melanoma.
Effective prevention of the development of ocular melanoma is a change of lifestyle, especially activity outdoors in natural light. However, you also need to be careful about harmful ultraviolet radiation and protect your eyes with sunglasses, choosing them according to the quality of the UV filter. We therefore recommend buying sunglasses in certified shops, where you have a guarantee that you are investing in high-quality protective lenses and thus also in effective protection of your eyes.