From Wills Eye Hospital’s Ocular Oncology Department — the leading eye cancer center in the United States
- Ocular melanoma most often occurs in Caucasian people in the prime of their lives (30-60 years old)
- Melanoma can occur in the eye causing vision loss and blindness or it can be silent with no symptoms
- What you eat, drink, breathe, smoke, or do does not cause ocular melanoma
- Unlike skin melanoma which can develop from exposure to the sun, eye melanoma is not caused by sunlight exposure
- Eye melanoma is life threatening (can be deadly if not caught early)
Other Facts:
- Skin melanoma does not increase your chance of getting eye melanoma
- Melanoma can be inherited from your parents in 2 percent of cases based on studies.This condition is called BAP-1 cancer predisposition syndrome.
- Eye melanoma should be detected as early as possible
- Get your eyes checked every year with full dilation just to be sure there is no melanoma
- If you are worried that you have eye melanoma or something that can lead to eye melanoma please contact The Wills Eye Cancer Center of Excellence. Direct phone numbers are: 215-928-3105 or 215-928-3106, 215-928-7161 or 267-908-LIFE (5433) or email – ocularmelanoma@fighteyecancer.com