Treatment For Eye Cancer
A team of healthcare professionals discuss your treatment options.
The most common treatments for eye cancers are:
surgery
radiotherapy
chemotherapy
immunotherapy
You may also have other treatments that your eye specialist will discuss with you.
A team of doctors and other professionals discuss the best treatment and care for you. They are the multidisciplinary team (MDT). Your MDT might include:
An ophthalmologist (pronounced op-thal-mol-o-gist) is a specialist eye doctor or surgeon. They treat conditions of the eye.
An oncologist is a doctor who specialises in treating cancer. This is most often with radiotherapy (clinical oncologist) or drug treatments such as chemotherapy or immunotherapy (medical oncologist).
An ocular oncologist is a doctor who specialises in treating cancers of the eye.
An ophthalmology clinical nurse specialist is a qualified nurse who has specialist knowledge of cancers of the eye. They organise your care between the eye specialists and other health professionals. A specialist nurse will also help to support you through your treatment. They will make sure you have the information you need.
An ocular prosthetist or oculist is a trained eye specialist who designs, makes and fits artificial eyes.
An expert who examines any cancer or tissue removed by a surgeon.
Other health professionals who may help and support you include:
a counsellor
an occupational therapist
a social worker
an MDT coordinator
a research nurse
Your treatment for eye cancer depends on:
the type of eye cancer you have and where it is in the eye
the size of your cancer and how far it has grown or spread (the stage)
your general health and level of fitness
Your local hospital may refer you to a dedicated eye cancer unit. This is also called an ocular oncology unit. The units have a specialist multidisciplinary team for eye cancers.
There are 4 specialist units in the UK, based in:
Liverpool
London
Sheffield
Glasgow
If you are concerned that your treatment is not under a multidisciplinary team, do ask about it. It may be that you have only seen one specialist, but the team has still got together. They may have already discussed your test results and case notes to decide the best treatment options for you.
If you are having check ups, you may be under a system of shared care. This is when you have appointments at the specialist centre and also with the ophthalmologist at your local hospital.
Melanoma starting in the eyeball is rare. Uveal melanoma is the most common type of eye melanoma.
The uvea is the middle layer of the eye and has 3 parts:
iris (the coloured part)
ciliary body
choroid
Your treatment depends on:
where the cancer is
the size of the cancer
how much it is affecting your sight
If the cancer is large or already stopping you from seeing out of the eye, you will probably have surgery to remove the eye. This operation is called an enucleation.
It can come as quite a shock if you need to have surgery to remove your eye. You will need time to come to terms with this change. As long as you have sight in one eye, it may not make much to what you can and can’t do. You may still be able to drive, for instance.
It may help to know that many people who have had this surgery rate their quality of life as highly as people who have kept their eye.
Find out how to cope with changes to your sight
Other treatments for the include:
radiotherapy
phototherapy
an operation to just remove the cancer (but not the eye)
Ask your doctor as many questions as you need to. Together you can decide which treatment is best for you.
Treatment for lymphoma of the eye depends on the type of lymphoma and if it has spread. It is treated in a similar way to other types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. You may have radiotherapy, chemotherapy or both. You sometimes have surgery to clear the lymphoma from the eye.
Your doctor may suggest external radiotherapy to your eye and brain. This can get rid of the cancer in the eye and also help stop it coming back in the brain or spinal cord.
Most people with lymphoma of the eye will have chemotherapy. You usually have this through a drip into your vein.
You may also have chemotherapy injected into the fluid around your spinal cord (intrathecal chemotherapy). You might have this with radiotherapy. Some people have chemotherapy put into their eye (intravitreal chemotherapy). This is more likely for lymphoma that has only come back in the eye.
For some types of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, you have targeted cancer drugs. You might these drugs through a drip into your vein or as tablets.
Squamous cells are flat and cover many surfaces in the body. Most squamous cell cancers are found on the skin. But they can develop in other parts of the body including the conjunctiva in the eye.
The conjunctiva is the clear, moist membrane that covers the front of the eye and lines the inside of the eyelid. Although rare, squamous cell cancer is the most common cancer of the conjunctiva. This cancer is generally slow growing (low grade), and very rarely spreads to other parts of the body.
Treatment includes:
surgery to remove the cancer
freezing therapy (cryotherapy)
chemotherapy eye drops (topical chemotherapy)
Basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer are types of skin cancer that can be found on the skin. They may be found on the eyelid. You may have one of the following treatments:
surgery
cryosurgery
creams to put directly onto the skin
radiotherapy
photodynamic therapy (treatment using a light sensitising drug and a very bright light)
Retinoblastoma most commonly affects children under the age of 5. Because it is so rare it is treated in specialist centres. Your eye specialist will explain the best treatment and what is involved.
Treatment options depend on stage and size and may include the following:
cryotherapy (freezing therapy)
laser therapy
chemotherapy
surgery
radiotherapy
Your eye specialist will always explain why a specific treatment is best for your child. And you can always ask questions if treatment decisions are not clear.
Your doctor might ask if you’d like to take part in a clinical trial. Doctors and researchers do trials to make existing treatments better and develop new treatments.
Last reviewed: 03 Jan 2025
Next review due: 03 Jan 2028
Your treatment depends on several factors. These include what type of eye cancer you have, how big it is and whether it has spread (the stage). It also depends on your general health.
After treatment for eye cancer, you have regular check ups at the hospital.
There is support available for you and your family during and after treatment for eye cancer.
Eye cancer includes different types of cancer. The type of eye cancer you have depends on the type of cell it starts in. There are different parts of the eye, and some of these are more likely to get cancer than others.
About Cancer generously supported by Dangoor Education since 2010. Learn more about Dangoor Education
What to ask your doctor about clinical trials.
Meet and chat to other cancer people affected by cancer.
Questions about cancer? Call freephone 0808 800 40 40 from 9 to 5 - Monday to Friday. Alternatively, you can email us.
