Living With Healthy Hunger Health Blog
Eye cancer, also known as ocular cancer, usually starts when healthy cells in the eye begin to change gradually and transform into abnormal cells or tumors. An eye tumor can be malignant or benign. Benign tumors grow without spreading while malignant tumors grow and spread all over the body.
Dr. Anton Bilchik, a Los Angeles cancer doctor says that ocular cancer is not universal. According to the American Cancer Society, there are 2,580 new eye cancer cases each year. Most of them are orbit and eye melanomas. Generally, there are two major types of ocular cancer, secondary and primary intraocular cancer.
Primary Intraocular Cancer
Primary intraocular cancer starts from inside your eyeball structures. In adults, primary intraocular lymphoma and eye melanomas are the most common primary intraocular cancers. The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) states that there are other rare ocular cancers such as eyelid carcinoma, lacrimal gland tumor, and conjunctival melanoma. Retinoblastoma cancer is common among children. It starts in the retina cells. In the U.S., it affects 300 children below five years annually.
Secondary Intraocular Cancer
Secondary intraocular cancer is a type of cancer which spreads from other organs of the body to your eyes. It is widespread compared to primary intraocular cancer. Mostly, cancer spreads to the eye structures and the uvea in patients battling with lung and breast cancers.
Symptoms of Eye Cancer
Adults and children have different symptoms of ocular cancer. Typically, the type of cancer a person has influences their ocular cancer symptoms. Some popular symptoms in adults include budging eyes, eye pain, watery eyes, blurred vision, dark spots in the iris and specks inside the field of view. Identifying the precise causes of ocular cancer is tricky. Nevertheless, scientists have found a link between some risk factors and eye cancer. Prolonged exposure to the risk factors might not cause ocular cancer.
There are different risk factors for eye lymphoma and eye melanoma. Eye melanoma is prevalent in Caucasian men, people with inherited medical conditions such as BAPI cancer syndrome, brown spots in the uvea and dysplastic nevus syndrome. On the other hand, eye lymphoma mainly results from low immune systems in HIV positive people, those with autoimmune diseases or under anti-rejection drugs after an organ transplant.
How to Manage Eye Cancer
Optometrists recommend having a complete eye examination each year. It helps your Los Angeles cancer doctor to identify symptoms of severe medical conditions including ocular cancer and to treat the disease before it develops.
Surgical oncology involves non-surgical pre-surgery treatments including radiation and chemotherapy, and the surgical removal of eye tumors. An oncologist monitors your surgery to prevent the growth, spread, and reoccurrence of cancer.
Dr. Anton Bilchik uses modern technology to diagnose cancer. When you notice any of these warning signs visit or call us at (310) 449-5206 to schedule an appointment.
