Nutrition Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Discovery Eye Foundation

January is Glaucoma Awareness Month

Glaucoma is a leading cause of vision loss and blindness in the United States. Glaucoma has no early symptoms — that’s why half of people with glaucoma don’t know they have it.

The only way to find out if you have glaucoma is to get a comprehensive dilated eye exam. There’s no cure for glaucoma, but early treatment can often stop the damage and protect your vision.  

Anyone can get glaucoma, but those at higher risk include:

Everyone over age 60, especially Hispanics/Latinos
African Americans over age 40
People with a family history of glaucoma

National Glaucoma Awareness month is important because:

It’s a silent disease – Open-angle glaucoma, the most common type, has no symptoms. Without treatment, those affected will slowly lose their peripheral vision. If glaucoma remains untreated, people may miss objects to the side and out of the corner of their eye.
It gives others a voice – National Glaucoma Awareness Month helps patients cope. It’s a time to let them share their stories.
It’s important to spread the word – The main objective of this month is to keep people in the know about this disease. Not everyone is aware of how easily they can be affected. Eye care organizations use this month to address the risks and provide treatment tips.

Questions for your doctor

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with glaucoma, you may have lots of questions. Starting treatment early is the best way to stop the damage and protect your vision. Talk to your eye doctor about your symptoms and treatment options.

Here are a few questions to ask your doctor:

What type of glaucoma do I have?
How often do I need to get a checkup for my glaucoma?
What are my treatment options?
What will happen if I don’t get treated for my glaucoma?
How will I know if my treatment is working?
What are the possible dangers or side effects from treatment?
Is there anything I can do to prevent my glaucoma from worsening?
Does glaucoma put me at risk for other eye diseases?
What can I expect for my vision — now and in the future?
Are there any activities I should avoid?

Visiting the doctor can be stressful, especially when you’re dealing with a new diagnosis. It helps to have questions written down ahead of time.

Discovery Eye Foundation is currently funding research to find better treatments for glaucoma. Gifts of any size can make a difference.

Donate Today!

Glaucoma simulation video courtesy of NEI

Tips To Protect Children From Digital Eye Strain

With COVID-19 and a shift to online learning by many schools, children are spending even more time looking at screens. Staring at digital screens for a long period of time can cause hazy, blurred vision and can make eyes burn and feel dry, itchy and irritated. This condition is known as digital eye strain or computer vision syndrome. Other symptoms of digital eye strain can include:

Neck and shoulder pain
Headaches
Fatigue
Words moving on the screen (due to underlying eye alignment issues)

What Parents Can Do:

Monitor screen time. Find some balance between the digital and real world. Two especially important aspects of this are making sure screens don’t cut into:
- Sleep. Not getting enough shut-eye leads to tired, sore eyes. Avoid exposure to screens for 1 hour before going to bed. Using devices past bedtime, especially for violent video games or shows, can interfere with sleep.

Putting down the device or stepping away from the computer or TV can help avoid eye and vision problems from too much screen time. Children age 6 years and older should be getting at least 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Active play is the best exercise for young children. Outside play can also be a great “workout” for children’s vision—giving them a chance to focus at different distances and getting exposure to natural sunlight.

Take frequent breaks. Children frequently get so absorbed in what they’re doing that they don’t notice symptoms of eye strain. Remind them to take breaks. Use the 20/20/20 rule: look away from the screen every 20 minutes, focus on an object at least 20 feet away, for at least 20 seconds. In addition, children should walk away from the screen for at least 10 minutes every hour. A simple timer can help your child remember, and there are even software programs that can help by turning off the screen in regular intervals.

Remember to blink. Staring at a computer can cut blinking rates by half and cause dry eyes. Encourage your child to try to blink extra, especially when they take breaks. Your pediatrician or eye doctor may recommend moisturizing eye drops or a room humidifier if your child continues to be bothered by dry eyes.
Screen positioning. Make sure the screen on your child’s desktop or laptop computer is slightly below eye level. Looking up at a screen opens eyes wider and dries them out quicker. Some experts suggest positioning device screens based on the 1/2/10 rule: mobile phones ideally at one foot, desktop devices and laptops at two feet, and roughly 10 feet for TV screens (depending on how big the screen is). Adjusting the font size—especially on smaller screens—so it’s twice as big as your child can comfortably read may also help reduce eye fatigue.
Spotlight on lighting. To cut down on glare and eye fatigue, consider the level of lighting in a room when using a computer or other screen. Ideally, it should be roughly half what it would be for other activities such as writing on paper or working on crafts. Try to position computers so that light from uncovered windows, lamps and overhead light fixtures aren’t shining directly on screens. Decrease the brightness of the screen to a more comfortable level for viewing. Some optometrists recommend special computer glasses with orange lenses that may also help reduce glare. Children who wear prescription eyeglasses may have an anti-reflective coating added, as well.
Get regular vision screenings. If your child is having blurry vision or similar eye problems, he or she may not speak up. That’s why regular vision screenings are important. The American Academy of Ophthalmology recommend children have their eyes checked by a pediatrician at well-child visits beginning at birth. If a problem is found during one of these routine eye exams, your pediatrician may refer you to a pediatric ophthalmologist.

Children, especially younger ones, will likely need help and reminders to use digital screen devices in an eye-friendly way. If you have any questions about keeping your child’s eyes and vision healthy, talk with your pediatrician.

Your Vision: Getting Fit Post-Pandemic

The past year has taken a toll on the physical and mental health of millions of people. While we were rightly focused on slowing the spread of the pandemic, widespread shutdowns brought about a more sedentary, inactive lifestyle, which has led to increased weight gain and worsened mental health for many. As we look ahead and as more people receive the vaccine, it is time to start reprioritizing physical activity and placing much needed attention on our health.

It’s no secret that exercise is the best way to get in shape and to prevent serious health conditions, especially after this pandemic. But did you know that you can actually exercise your way to healthy eyes too? By eating a healthy diet and exercising regularly, you can help prevent eye conditions linked to obesity and being out of shape.

Below are a few tips on how to get your fitness regimen back on track.

Set Goals – The first step to getting back in shape is deciding what you want to achieve. Take a personal inventory and write a contract with yourself, put it someplace where you can see it every day.

Start Small – Getting too ambitious when planning goals can set you up for failure. Instead, ease into the changes. A lot of people get discouraged because they try to change their whole routine immediately.

Build Momentum – Mini daily victories create a sense of accomplishment. A few daily successes will create a snowball effect. Add more challenges, then a few more and that’s what will keep the momentum going.

Enjoy Your Workout – The best way to stick with an exercise routine, is enjoying it. You’re more likely to stay on schedule and exercise more often if you enjoy what you are doing. Hiking, swimming, boxing, dance or yoga are great options—and create atmosphere that’s inviting.

Stretching Matters – It preps your muscles for exercise and cools them down after, guarding against injury. Stretching also improves your posture.

Invest In Equipment – You don’t need to spend a lot of money—a few weights are enough to deliver results. Even minimal equipment allows for more intense and effective workouts.

Make it a Habit – Exercise should be part of your daily routine, it should be as normal as showering or brushing your teeth.

Get A Workout Buddy – If you can’t recruit a family member or friend, join a Zoom class or an outdoor club.

Stay active, get plenty of exercise and keep a healthy diet. When you’re tempted to slack off, or quit exercising all together—give yourself a day off to relax. Just remember how terrific you’ll look and feel when you keep moving.

You’ll probably agree it’s worth working out a few minutes each day to reap the rewards of good health and great vision!

Click here for Eye Healthy Recipes.

May-Healthy Vision Month

When it comes to our health, we may visit our doctors and nurses regularly to make sure our bodies are healthy. But what about our eyes? They’re not always top of mind, but they’re just as important! May is Healthy Vision Month, an observance coordinated by the National Eye Institute to motivate Americans to make their eye health a priority and educate them about steps they can take to protect their vision.

Here are a few ways you can help protect your vision

Get an annual comprehensive dilated eye exam.
Know your family’s eye health history. It’s important to know if anyone has been diagnosed with an eye disease or condition, since some are hereditary.
Eat right to protect your sight: In particular, eat plenty of dark leafy greens such as spinach, kale, or collard greens, and fish that is high in omega-3 fatty acids such as salmon, albacore tuna, trout, and halibut. Visit Eye Cook for eye healthy recipes.
Maintain a healthy weight.
Wear protective eyewear when playing sports or doing activities around the home, such as painting, yard work, and home repairs.
Quit smoking or never start.
Wear sunglasses that block 99 -100 percent of ultraviolet A (UVA) and ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation.
Wash your hands before taking out your contacts and cleanse your contact lenses properly to avoid infection.
Practice workplace eye safety.

Taking care of your eyes also may benefit your overall health. People with vision problems are more likely than those with good vision to have diabetes, poor hearing, heart problems, high blood pressure, lower back pain and strokes, as well as have increased risk for falls, injury and depression.

In addition to your comprehensive dilated eye exams, visit an eye care professional if you have

Decreased vision.
Eye pain
Drainage or redness of the eye
Double vision
Diabetes
Floaters (tiny specks that appear to float before your eyes)
Circles (halos) around light sources or if you see flashes of light

For this Healthy Vision Month, take care of your eyes to make them last a lifetime.

April is Women’s Eye Health Month

This month of April is dedicated to

WOMEN’S EYE HEALTH MONTH

With Women’s History Month, Women’s Eye Health Month and Mother’s Day all happening this spring, we’ve got all of the women in our lives on our minds.

Did you know that blindness affects women more than men? The National Institutes of Health reports that 2/3rds of the people with blindness or visual impairments are women. Often, hormones, and especially life changes such as pregnancy and menopause, cause changes in women’s eyes. Preventing blindness and vision problems requires keeping a healthy lifestyle, avoiding certain habits, and seeing the eye doctor regularly.

Many women aren’t aware that they have a higher risk for developing eye and vision problems. In an effort to create awareness of various eye diseases that women are more prone to have than men, April has been dedicated to educating women about these diseases, along with providing resources and recommendations on the best ways to maintain excellent vision for women.

The National Eye Institute also stated that women deal with greater instances of eye disorders, in part, because they tend to live longer than men, are more likely to undergo cancer treatments which affect vision, and experience age-related hormonal changes that can affect the eyes. Women also have higher rates of eye diseases such as cataract, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration than men.

As we mentioned, hormones are a factor in developing eye problems, but also lifestyle, genetics, pregnancy and more contribute to the problems. Women pass through several biological and hormone changes that men do not. Pregnancy causes changes in the eyes such as dry eyes, puffiness, migraine headaches that affect vision, light sensitivity and more. If a woman is not pregnant, even taking birth control can cause hormonal changes and blood clots in some cases. If a clot happens, that can lead to strokes that affect vision, sometimes permanently.

Later in life, eye problems become more frequent in both men and women. However, women statistically have a higher chance of developing chronic conditions such as lupus, arthritis, multiple sclerosis and more. All of these conditions can affect eye health.

It’s important for women to know the risks for eye-related diseases resulting in vision impairment and take the steps to prevent eventual vision loss. Here are some ways that you can help to protect your eyes and save your eyesight:

Find out about your family history of eye diseases and conditions.
Protect your eyes from the sun by wearing 100% UV blocking sunglasses when outdoors.
Don’t smoke.
Consume a healthy diet with proper nutrition and special eye health supplements as prescribed by an eye doctor. (Eye Healthy Recipes)
Adhere to contact lens hygiene and safety.
Adhere to cosmetic hygiene and safety precautions.
Protect your eyes against extended exposure to blue light from computers, smartphones and LED lamps.
If you are pregnant or planning to become pregnant and have diabetes, see an eye doctor for a comprehensive eye exam. In women who have diabetes, diabetic retinopathy can accelerate quickly during pregnancy and can present a risk for the baby as well.

Mothers are often charged with caring for the eye health of the entire family, but too often their own eye health is neglected. It is critical that mothers take care of their eyes and overall health so that they can be in the best condition to care for their families.

Speak to your eye care professional about your personal eye health and vision risks so you can exercise the precautions and measures to protect your eyes. Encourage the other women in your life to do so as well. Once vision is lost, it often cannot be regained and there are many steps you can take to prevent it with proper knowledge and awareness.

The most important way to prevent vision loss is to ensure you schedule regular eye exams. Don’t wait for symptoms to appear as many eye issues are painless and symptomless, and sometimes by the time you notice symptoms, vision loss is untreatable.

Click here for Eye Healthy Recipes.

How to Prevent Eye Strain While Working From Home

Working from home has become the new normal for many Americans during this pandemic. Most are happy without the commute, although working outside the office and in all sorts of strange places, such as bedrooms, backyards, living rooms, has become common place. We’ve had to learn how to work remotely, which in turn means spending a lot more time using computers and smartphones.

Moving out of properly-lit classrooms and offices – and away from ergonomically correct desks – can have long-term effects on our eyes. Excessive time at a computer screen under the best conditions can lead to symptoms of eye strain.

Eye Strain Symptoms include:

Headaches
Blurred vision
Uncomfortable dry eyes
Neck and shoulder pain

To help avoid eye strain, here are few tips for working from home:

Record time spent on screens – Most adults age 18 and older spend at least 13 hours each day using digital devices. Extended screen time can cause discomfort and vision difficulties. When working from home, you may lose track of how much time you’re on your computer or smartphone. So keep track of the hours you use devices. That way, you’ll be aware of the demand you’re placing on your eyes.

Rest and blink your eyes – Researchers found that over 30% of people using digital devices rarely take time to rest their eyes. Just over 10% say they never take a break, even when working from home. The eye muscles get overworked and don’t get a chance to relax and recover. Experts suggest the 20-20-20 rule; every 20 minutes, focus your eyes and attention on something 20 feet away for 20 seconds. You can also get up and walk around for a few minutes.

Reduce exposure to blue light – In the spectrum of light, blue is more high energy and close to ultraviolet light. So, if you use screens throughout the day, ask your eye doctor about the value of computer glasses that block blue light. Reducing exposure to blue light may help lessen vision problems. At home, using digital devices until bedtime can overstimulate your brain and make it more difficult to fall asleep. Eye doctors recommend no screen time at least one to two hours before going to sleep.

Sit up straight – Proper posture is important. Your back should be straight and your feet on the floor while you work. Elevate your wrists slightly instead of resting them on the keyboard.

Proper lighting – A setting that’s too bright (sunny backyard) or too dim (cavernous basement) can cause eye strain and headaches. Your screen should be bright enough that you don’t need to squint. A screen shield can help reduce glare.

Set up monitor properly – Make sure your computer screen is about 25 inches, or an arm’s length, away from your face. The center of the screen should be about 10-15 degrees below eye level. Cut glare by using a matte screen filter. You can find them for all types of computers, phones, and tablets. Increase font size or set the magnification of the documents you are reading to a comfortable size.

Consider computer glasses –For the greatest comfort at your computer, you might benefit from having your eye doctor modify your eyeglasses prescription to create customized computer glasses. This is especially true if you normally wear distance contact lenses, which may also become dry and uncomfortable during extended screen time. Computer glasses also are a good choice if you wear bifocals or progressive lenses, because these lenses generally are not optimal for the distance to your computer screen.

Create Technology-Free Zones – These tips can help reduce eye strain when you’re forced to look at screens all day, creating technology-free zones in certain areas of your home, like the bedroom or bathroom. If you spend the entire day working on the computer, getting in bed and scrolling through social media until you fall asleep won’t do your eyes any favors.

Once you’re done for the day, truly unplug. Read a book or spend some quality time with family members without your phone.

Get an Eye Exam – If you have tried all these tips and eye strain is still an issue, it might be time to see an eye care professional to schedule an eye exam. The exam may even detect underlying issues before they becomes worse.

21 “NEW” NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS FOR 2021

2020 has been quite a year, which makes getting a fresh start in 2021 feel super appealing. For some people, that might mean making a New Year’s resolution that helps them get the year started on the right foot. Although the traditional New Year’s resolutions usually last until the end of January, then you are back to your old habits again. Turns out, our brains are just not into making swift, sudden changes to our habits.

So instead of going for the typical diet, exercise, or financial overhaul-style resolution, why not try something a little different this year?

Here are 21 new New Year’s resolution ideas for 2021

Try Something New Each Month – Who says your resolution has to be sticking to just one thing. As they say, “Variety is the spice of life.” Well, spice up your new year by setting a goal to try something new each month.

Make monthly playlists – As you hear a song that impacts you or you find yourself listening to one repeat, add it to the playlist. The lists will be eclectic on their own, but by the end of the year, you will have an amazing collection of songs to pull from to create a yearly top songs playlist. You’ll enjoy the memories of looking back to each playlist and hearing the mood of each month of the year and all the new artists you discovered.

Make Time for “Self-Care” – If you feel like you have tons of commitments that aren’t always for you, carve out some solid “me” time in the year ahead by trying a new hobby—or resurrecting an old one—such as cooking, making art, or reading a good book.

Walk a Mile a Day – The thing about this New Year’s resolution is that you might already be doing it. This doesn’t mean go out for a specific walk or run for a mile or more each day, while that could be what you want to work towards. But to start, find a good pedometer, or a pedometer app for your phone (if it doesn’t already have one), and see if you can cumulatively walk a mile a day. For some of you, this is a breeze and you will need a little more of a challenge. Monitor your average mileage or steps over a week and make a challenge based on the results. For the rest of you, getting movement into your daily routine might be a little more foreign. Getting closer to your mileage goal is all about getting creative about how to get your steps in. Try parking at the back of the parking lot at the grocery store, or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Take the long way to the break room for your water or coffee break. And then there’s always running in place or on a treadmill. Remember it all adds up and in no time you’ll be walking more than a mile a day.

Stay in Touch – If there’s one thing 2020 has shown us, it’s that there is no excuse not to stay in touch with those we love. With so many ways to connect, from text, to email, to Zoom, to a good old-fashioned phone call, if we have to be apart, there are so many ways to get in touch. And another thing we’ve learned is how much a quick text from a friend or a short Facetime with a grandparent can go a long way toward helping us feel not so alone and fill us up with love. Go into this with a goal of connecting with 1-3 people per week. Remember that reaching out to your favorite people will brighten their day, even if they can get back to you right away. Ultimately, the last thing you want for any of your friendships is to look down at your phone and see that the last text you sent was a year ago!

New Hobby – Learning something new is always good or even going back to something old that you haven’t done in a while. Try your hand at gardening. If you are worried about not having a green thumb, start with a small herb garden or a bed of perennials for your project. That doesn’t require much of a green thumb and is more about just keeping them watered. If you’re looking for something to keep your hands busy, try one of the many knitting or embroidery kits out there. That will help you to zone out. No one says you have to be a pro at the start, nor do you have to do it the hard way. Easing yourself into a hobby will help you stick with it and it may be an activity you will enjoy doing long term.

Do Random Acts of Kindness – Is there a better feeling than to perform a random act of kindness for someone you love or someone in need? Remember the saying: you get more than you give.

Read More Books – Reading is one of the best ways to grow as a person. If you’re not an avid reader, try setting a realistic target such as to read 1 book a month. Or, try listening to recorded books—you can subscribe to Audible which has many free recordings every month.

Drink more water – It’s always good to drink more water. The daily recommended water intake is 8 glasses. I find that one of the best ways to drink more water is to keep a large bottle of water nearby at all times.

Send handwritten letters – This year has shown us all that we want is to stay in touch, and sure, you could send a text or an email, but why not step it up a notch and send something to brighten someone’s mailbox! Start this goal simply by sending a few letters over a couple of months. Bonus: You can even make it a fun craft time with your kids!

Remove negativity or anything that makes you feel lousy – Remove things like sad movies or news sources that just upset you.

Pay it Forward – 2021 is a great time to do something nice for someone else. Maybe you’ll pay for someone’s coffee in the Starbucks drive-thru or buy a meal for a homeless person. If you receive good things, try to spread them, too.

Sanitize your phone weekly or daily – We check our phones a million times a day, and if you’ve taken yours into the ladies’ room, you’re not the only one. But that means phones carry about 10 times as much bacteria as most toilet seats. Use disinfectant wipes, such as Lysol wipes, which kill 99.9% of viruses and bacteria. They don’t contain bleach, so they’re safe to use on smartphones and tablets.

Declutter Your Space – A clean home is a happy home. Reduce anxiety and stress by tidying up and decluttering everything around you. Tackle the refrigerator, cabinets, messy drawers, desks, and closets. Toss everything you haven’t used in six months, donate what you don’t love or need, and get ready to celebrate the new year with new clarity and peace of mind.

Manage Stress – Stress and anxiety can get left unnoticed for some time, and later manifest themselves in physical and emotional ways. Instead of waiting for them to rear their ugly heads, learn stress management and reduction techniques now. Some people meditate, others practice yoga, and many exercises to combat stress.

Nurture True Friendships – Having many acquaintances is nice until you realize that a super-small portion of them will be there for you through thick and thin. Resolve to spend your precious energy on only those you care most deeply about—and those who reciprocate. True friendships are about quality, not quantity.

Give to Your Community – Whether you give back once or repeatedly, taking time to volunteer, and donating to charity organizations empowers us and opens us up to new experiences and opportunities. Help research non-profits organizations that align with your interest and/or your spirit of giving.

Monitor Social Media Use – Too much social media can be a bad thing—especially when you start comparing your real life to someone’s seemingly picture-perfect online life. Plan to take a step back this year, whether spending a day (or more) social media-free or simply reducing the number of times you check your apps in any one day.

Stop Procrastinating – “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today.”, a great quote by Mark Twain! Begin by taking a few minutes to make a list of the things you were going to do tomorrow—and yes, do at least one of those things today. Start imagining how you’ll feel if you actually tackled all the stuff you’ve been putting off.

Practice Gratitude – Most successful people practice gratitude to feel healthier, happier, and more at peace with themselves—and they do so daily. Fostering gratitude means writing down a few things you’re thankful for and why. You could also begin your days by vocalizing what you’re grateful for or meditate about those things for which you are grateful. Cultivating this habit in the new year can even help you sleep better and be kinder to others.

Spread Kindness – There’s actually scientific evidence that being kind makes you feel calmer, healthier, and happier—and it’s also contagious. Make the world a better place by resolving to do one kind thing or more for a stranger every day or month. To help make it a daily practice, download a free Kindness Calendar.

September is Healthy Aging Month

Healthy Aging Month is an annual health observance designed to focus national attention on the positive aspects of growing older. Aging is a process that brings many changes. Vision loss and blindness, however, do not have to be one of them. There are several simple steps you can take to help keep your eyes healthy for the rest of your life.

Eye diseases often have no early symptoms, but can be detected during a comprehensive dilated eye exam. A comprehensive dilated eye exam is different from the basic eye exam or screening you have for glasses or contacts. By dilating the pupils and examining the back of the eyes, your eye care professional can detect eye diseases in their early stages, before vision loss occurs. By performing a comprehensive eye exam, your eye care professional can check for early signs of –

Here are some other tips to help maintain healthy vision and body now and as you age:

Eat a healthy, balanced diet. Loading up on fruits and vegetables can help keep your eyes healthy and disease free.

Maintain a healthy weight. Being overweight increases your risk for heart disease and diabetes. Complications from diabetes, such as diabetic retinopathy or glaucoma, can eventually lead to vision loss.

Don’t smoke. Smoking increases your risk for age-related macular degeneration, cataract, and other systemic diseases, including cancer. Wear protective eyewear when outdoors. Protecting your eyes from the sun’s ultraviolet rays when you are outdoors is important for your eye health. Choose sunglasses that block 99 to 100 percent of both UV-A and UV-B radiation.

Even if you are not experiencing vision problems, visiting an eye care professional regularly for a comprehensive dilated eye exam is the most important thing you can do to reduce your risk of vision loss as you age.

Download “Everyone’s vision can change with age”
A handout with explanation on how vision can change with age.

Children’s Eyes

It’s said that the “eyes are the windows to the soul.” If that is true, looking into the eyes of a child, it’s easy to see the beauty and innocence that all of us wish could be more a part of the world they will live in.

I’ve also heard that there is a wonder found in those eyes – a curiosity that opens the child’s brain and heart to all of life’s joys and potentials.

The thought that those eyes could be threatened through accident or disease is a painful reality that all of us at Discovery are working to prevent through all of our cutting-edge research with your on-going support.

All too often I have been present in an ophthalmologist’s office when a caring doctor is forced to tell a family that there is a major problem with their baby’s vision. Diseases of the retina such as glaucoma, or retinitis pigmentosa, are joined by diseases of the cornea like keratoconus. It’s even worse when a family has to hear the diagnosis is retinoblastoma – or a cancer of the eye. In these personal and painful moments, a family’s entire life is forever changed and their child’s struggle with vision will remain on-going and difficult.

August is “Children’s Eye Safety” month, and I can’t think of anything else more important to protect. The eyes of a child are beautiful, full of innocence and love. So, let’s make sure that they will continue to see the world with beauty and clear vision.

The Discovery Eye Foundation is committed to finding the answers that will preserve the vision of millions of people. Our groundbreaking research needs your help to move forward!

To learn how you can help, click here Ways to Help DEF or click the button below to donate online.

Tom Sullivan
DEF’s Ambassador of Vision
sullivanvision.com

Cancer in the EYE: Unexpected Thought

When you think of cancer, most of us do not think about the eye or vision. Though rare, cancer can start inside or outside of the eye. If cancer starts inside the eyeball it’s called intraocular and if it starts outside the eye (eyelid or in the eye socket) then it’s called extraocular tumor. It can occur in both children and adults. Most major eye centers have specialists who are trained in the diagnosis and treatment of eye cancers.

Here are a few types of cancer in eye:

Eye Cancer in Children: The most common cancer seen in the eye of children is retinoblastoma. This occurs in children at very early age so these are the youngest cancer patients. This cancer starts inside the eye and affects the retinal cells. This is a cancer that presents very quietly, the child has no pain, no complaints and plays happily without any problem until one day parents notice that the pupil of the eye has some abnormal ‘White Glow’ (leukocoria) rather than the usual ‘red-eye’ reflection seen in a photo—that can be the first sign of retinoblastoma. So, it requires prompt evaluation by an ophthalmologist. Retinoblastoma is a curable cancer but if it is not treated on time, it can grow quickly and fill the eyeball. It can lead to loss of vision and life-threatening problems.

At the later stage of this cancer, the only one way to survive is to remove the eyeball (enucleation). Like many of other types of cancer, retinoblastoma has a genetic component so genetic testing needs to be done. The tumor begins with the RB1 gene mutation that stimulates retinal cells to develop into a tumor called a retinoblastoma. The RB1 mutation can be inherited from the parents, but in some cases it is sporadic and not inherited. There are various treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy etc. to cure retinoblastoma cancer. Rarely it can spread beyond the eye.

Eye Cancer in Adults: The development of a tumor in the back of the eye in adults can be from a metastatic cancer from elsewhere in the body or can arise in the eye itself. The most common primary eye cancer is called uveal melanoma and is a cluster of rapidly growing cells underneath the retina, which can lead to vision loss. The tumor can also appear as a dark black spot on the iris. Ideally the uveal melanoma can be treated when the tumor is still only in the eye.However, unfortunately, in approximately 50% of patients the uveal melanoma spreads (metastasis) to other part of the body, making it the most dangerous eye cancer in adults. Depending upon its location the uveal melanoma may not cause early symptoms but the patient may experience blurred vision or large numbers of floaters. The uveal melanoma can be diagnosed only when an ophthalmologist or eye care specialist examines your eye. What is the main cause of uveal melanoma? How it starts, grow and spread? These questions are still unanswered. The risk of this cancer increases in persons having fair skin (white), light eye color and inability to tan. There are certain changes in the genes linked to uveal melanoma. Currently the most common are GNAQ and BAP-1 gene mutations that are associated with greater risk of metastasis, where it spreads to other parts of the body. The standard treatment of this tumor is fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB), brachytherapy (radioactive material inside a small capsule placed next to the tumor), radiation therapy and possibly enucleation.

Metastasis to Eye: Finally, the other types of cancers found in the eyes are because of the spreading of a primary cancer (from a distant site such as the breast, lung or liver) to the eye. Sometimes an eye exam can identify a metastatic tumor before the primary tumor is recognized elsewhere in the body. Examples of cancers that spread to the eye are breast cancer in women and lung cancer in men. Less commonly, the prostate, kidney, gastrointestinal and blood cancers (leukemia and lymphomas) can spread to the eye. Treatment depends on the type of cancer involved.

Eye Damage from Chemotherapy: Eye problems can also develop through the side effects of chemotherapy or hormone therapies given for tumors outside the eye. When a person has any type of cancer, they often must undergo treatments with chemotherapeutic drugs. A commonly used cancer drug is called cisplatin. When treated with cisplatin, there can be damage to the retinal pigment epithelial cells in the inner part of the retina. Hemorrhages or bleeding can occur within the retina itself and vision can decrease temporarily. If a person is undergoing cancer treatments, it is a good idea to have their eyes checked, especially if they are having any vision problems. The chemotherapy does not actually cause cancers but only side effects.

Therefore, if you are having any decreased vision, it is always makes sense to have a good eye examination to identify any problems at early stage.

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