Melanoma of the eye is a type of cancer that develops in cells that produce melanin – a pigment that gives your skin color. Your eyes also have cells that produce melanin and can develop melanoma. Melanoma of the eye is also called ocular melanoma. Most melanoma of the eye occurs in a part of the eye that you cannot see by looking in the mirror. This makes it difficult to detect melanoma of the eye. In addition, melanoma of the eye does not usually cause early signs or symptoms.
It is not clear what causes melanoma of the eye. Doctors know that melanoma of the eye occurs when errors occur in the DNA of healthy eye cells. DNA errors tell cells to grow and multiply out of control, so mutated cells continue to live when they would normally die.
Thanks to advances in technology, it is now possible to treat melanoma of the eye, which does not necessarily require surgical removal of the eye, but can also be saved by a combination of surgery and focused radiation.
