Ocular melanoma, or eye melanoma, is a rare cancer that starts in the uveal tract. This is the pigmented area under the white part of your eye. Amongst eye cancers in adults, it’s the most common.
The signs of eye melanoma differ based on where and how big the tumor is. You might experience blurred vision, double vision, or eye irritation. Others symptoms can be pain, light flashes, a smaller vision area, or even vision loss. Yet, sometimes, you might have this cancer for years without any symptoms.
The main cause of ocular melanoma remains a mystery. But we know a few things that make it more likely to occur. These include having light-colored eyes, fair skin, not being able to tan much, and certain genetic changes. This cancer can also spread, usually going to the liver.
Doctors treat eye melanoma with methods like radiation therapy, surgery, and laser therapy. Stem cell therapy is a new, hopeful approach that’s being explored.
Key Takeaways:
- Ocular melanoma is a rare form of cancer that affects the pigmented layer beneath the white of the eye.
- Symptoms may include blurred vision, pain, flashes of light, and loss of vision.
- Risk factors for ocular melanoma include light-colored eyes, fair skin, inability to tan, and certain genetic mutations.
- Ocular melanoma can spread to other parts of the body, particularly the liver.
- Treatment options for eye melanoma include radiation therapy, surgery, laser therapy, and stem cell therapy.
Diagnosis and Treatment of Eye Melanoma
Spotting eye melanoma needs a thorough exam by a skilled eye doctor. This check includes looking at how well you see, checking the back of the eye, and taking special pictures. Sometimes, the doctor needs to take a small piece of the tumor to look at closely. All these steps help find out how big the tumor is, where it is, and how far it has grown.
After figuring out you have eye melanoma, your doctor makes a plan that fits the tumor’s details. The plan might include:
- Radiation Therapy: A common treatment is using radiation. This can be done by placing radioactive material close to the eye or by aiming carefully focused protons at the tumor.
- Surgery: If the tumor is large or in a specific place, you might need surgery. This could be removing the whole eye or just the tumor itself.
- Laser Therapy: Focused lasers are also used in some cases. They can zap the tumor without hurting healthy parts of the eye too much.
- Novel Therapies: New treatments like boosting your immune system or aiming at the tumor’s unique features with special drugs are also becoming popular.
Research in regenerative medicine, like using stem cells, is another area of interest for eye melanoma. The idea is to use the body’s own repair system to get better results from treatment. So, using stem cells could not only help see better but also lower the chances of the tumor coming back.
Doctors are always looking for better ways to treat eye melanoma. They mix the old ways with new ideas, like stem cell therapy. This effort is to make life better for those facing this kind of cancer.
Advances in Stem Cell Therapy for Eye Melanoma
Stem cell therapy is promising for eye melanoma. It aims to restore normal tissue function. It also fights against stem cells that help the cancer grow and resist treatment.
Uveal melanoma has stem-like cells that can keep growing the tumor. If these cells are targeted and removed, treatments could work better. This might also lower the chances of the cancer returning or spreading.
Stem cell therapy for eye melanoma is not widely used yet. But, it’s showing a lot of hope for the future. As we make more progress, this form of regenerative medicine could really change how we fight this hard-to-beat cancer.