Eye cancer
Eye cancer affects about 60 people in Ireland each year. It is relatively rare.
Eye cancer can be treated with surgery, chemotherapy, laser treatment and radiotherapy.
Detecting cancer early
Learn about changes to look for when checking your body for early detection, and how cancer is usually diagnosed.
Treatments
Treatment for eye cancer includes laser surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. For more information about treatments for eye cancer, visit our treatment page.
What is eye cancer?
Eye cancer describes a cancer that develops in cells in one of the parts of the eye. The type of cancer that develops depends on the type of cell it begins in. Occular melanoma is the most common type of eye cancer.
Eye cancer is a rare cancer: around 60 people are diagnosed with eye cancer in Ireland every year.* They are also known as ocular cancers.
What is the eye?
The eye is the organ of sight. It sits in a little hollow area in your skull called the eye socket. The eyelids protect the front of your eyes and keep them moist and clean.
Your eye has three layers:
- Sclera. The outer later - the white of your eye along with the clear part at the front of your eye called the cornea. This layer protects your eye.
- Uvea. The middle layer. The front uvea includes the iris and ciliary body, while the back uvea is the choroid, which is rich in blood vessels and pigmented cells. The iris is the coloured part of your eye with the pupil in the centre, which changes size to let more or less light into your eye. The ciliary body is a muscle behind the iris that changes the size of your pupil and the shape of your lens to help your eye focus.
- Retina. The inner layer. This has nerve cells that are sensitive to light and sends messages to your brain along the optic nerve.
The conjunctiva is a thin membrane that covers the surface of your inner eyelid and the white part of your eyeball.
Continue reading about eye cancer
Frequently Asked Questions
About suggestions
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Phasellus lobortis dolor ut quam tristique auctor. Fusce a egestas orci, a pellentesque ante. Etiam ligula orci, aliquet eu augue eget, pharetra tempor nulla. Cras in dignissim tortor, et ornare lorem. Vivamus molestie diam et blandit tincidunt. Nam sed nibh tincidunt, iaculis enim non, ullamcorper libero. Fusce consequat aliquam diam, vestibulum congue ipsum aliquam quis. Praesent non sodales mi. Donec pretium libero ac auctor bibendum. Vestibulum risus augue, rhoncus ac urna at, vestibulum elementum lectus. Vestibulum nec augue nec tellus tempor volutpat. Ut aliquam ullamcorper tellus at placerat.
Maecenas eget massa eget metus viverra pharetra semper id lectus. Vestibulum nisl eros, lacinia id pulvinar ut, convallis et ante. Ut tincidunt sed magna in vestibulum. Fusce consequat molestie tellus, vitae posuere augue sollicitudin vel. In viverra egestas facilisis. In varius a diam elementum aliquam. Pellentesque interdum nunc neque, et hendrerit lorem hendrerit sit amet.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Phasellus lobortis dolor ut quam tristique auctor. Fusce a egestas orci, a pellentesque ante. Etiam ligula orci, aliquet eu augue eget, pharetra tempor nulla. Cras in dignissim tortor, et ornare lorem. Vivamus molestie diam et blandit tincidunt. Nam sed nibh tincidunt, iaculis enim non, ullamcorper libero. Fusce consequat aliquam diam, vestibulum congue ipsum aliquam quis. Praesent non sodales mi. Donec pretium libero ac auctor bibendum. Vestibulum risus augue, rhoncus ac urna at, vestibulum elementum lectus. Vestibulum nec augue nec tellus tempor volutpat. Ut aliquam ullamcorper tellus at placerat.
Maecenas eget massa eget metus viverra pharetra semper id lectus. Vestibulum nisl eros, lacinia id pulvinar ut, convallis et ante. Ut tincidunt sed magna in vestibulum. Fusce consequat molestie tellus, vitae posuere augue sollicitudin vel. In viverra egestas facilisis. In varius a diam elementum aliquam. Pellentesque interdum nunc neque, et hendrerit lorem hendrerit sit amet.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Phasellus lobortis dolor ut quam tristique auctor. Fusce a egestas orci, a pellentesque ante. Etiam ligula orci, aliquet eu augue eget, pharetra tempor nulla. Cras in dignissim tortor, et ornare lorem. Vivamus molestie diam et blandit tincidunt. Nam sed nibh tincidunt, iaculis enim non, ullamcorper libero. Fusce consequat aliquam diam, vestibulum congue ipsum aliquam quis. Praesent non sodales mi. Donec pretium libero ac auctor bibendum. Vestibulum risus augue, rhoncus ac urna at, vestibulum elementum lectus. Vestibulum nec augue nec tellus tempor volutpat. Ut aliquam ullamcorper tellus at placerat.
Maecenas eget massa eget metus viverra pharetra semper id lectus. Vestibulum nisl eros, lacinia id pulvinar ut, convallis et ante. Ut tincidunt sed magna in vestibulum. Fusce consequat molestie tellus, vitae posuere augue sollicitudin vel. In viverra egestas facilisis. In varius a diam elementum aliquam. Pellentesque interdum nunc neque, et hendrerit lorem hendrerit sit amet.
Our Survivor Support programme we can match you with a volunteer who has gone through a similar experience.
If you’re finding it difficult to get to and from treatments, we may be able to ease some of the strain of travelling to and from your appointments.
