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Ocular Melanoma Symptoms

Regular eye exams and familiarizing yourself with ocular melanoma symptoms are the keys to catching eye cancer early.

Screening for Eye Cancer

Ocular melanoma, a form of eye cancer, is quite rare. Only a few thousand people in the U.S. are diagnosed with the disease each year.

The good news is it can be caught early. Having regular eye exams with dilation, familiarizing yourself with ocular melanoma symptoms and reporting them to your eye doctor right away can help ensure ocular melanomas are detected at their earliest, most treatable stages.

Symptoms of Ocular Melanoma

Some eye cancers are detected during routine eye exams. Others are diagnosed when a person experiences signs of ocular melanoma and goes to the doctor for evaluation. The most common ocular melanoma symptoms include:

  • Blurred vision
  • Floaters or vision “spots”
  • Loss of peripheral vision
  • Growing dark spot on the iris (colored part of eye)
  • Changes to the pupil or eyeball
  • Eye bulging
  • Difficulty moving the eyeball

Most people who experience these symptoms do not have eye cancer. Still, it’s important to seek a diagnosis right away. The sooner ocular melanoma is diagnosed, the better your prognosis may be.

The Importance of Regular Eye Exams

Regular eye exams with dilation are important for overall health. Eye doctors use dilated eye exams to detect vision problems and various types of eye diseases, including eye cancer.

Most adults up to age 65 should have an eye exam every two to four years. Adults 65 and older should get an eye exam every year or two. Individuals at high risk for ocular melanoma, including those with dysplastic nevus syndrome and BAP1 cancer syndrome should have more frequent eye exams. Work with your eye doctor to create an eye exam schedule that’s right for you.

Even with regular eye exams, ocular melanoma can go unnoticed. It’s important, particularly for people who are at increased risk for ocular melanoma, to seek out eye care from an ophthalmologist or optometrist with experience diagnosing and treating eye cancers. Emory Eye Center diagnoses and treats more ocular melanoma than anywhere else in the state, meaning we have the expertise to detect eye cancers at their onset.