Signs and Symptoms of Eye Cancer

Most eye cancers are melanomas (intraocular melanomas). Many people with eye melanoma don’t have symptoms unless the cancer grows in certain parts of the eye or becomes more advanced.

Common symptoms of eye cancer

Signs and symptoms of eye melanomas can include:

• Problems with vision (such as blurry or distorted vision, loss of part of your field of sight, or sudden loss of vision)
• Floaters (spots or squiggles drifting in the field of vision) or flashes of light
• A growing dark spot on the colored part of the eye (iris) or the white part of the eye
• Change in the size or shape of the pupil (the dark spot in the center of the eye)
• Change in position of the eyeball within its socket
• Bulging of the eye
• Change in the way the eye moves within the socket

Does eye cancer cause pain?

Pain is rare with eye melanomas, unless the tumor has grown extensively outside the eye.

When to see a doctor

Other, less serious conditions can also cause many of these symptoms. For example, floaters can be a normal part of aging. Still, if you have any of these symptoms, it’s important to see a doctor so the cause can be found and treated, if needed.