Risk of Eye Cancer


Intraocular eye cancer affects the eye and/or its surrounding parts. Below are some of the risk factors associated with the three types of these cancers.

Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma

  • The biggest risk for this type of eye cancer is a compromised immune system.
  • People who at the greatest risk are people who are suffering from AIDS
  • People who have been diagnosed with autoimmune diseases – these occur when a person’s immune system attacks a person’s body instead of foreign agents, including rheumatoid arthritis.
  • People who have recently had an organ transplant and are on medication necessary to prevent rejection of the organ by their body – these drugs reduce immune function in order to achieve this goal
  • People born with immune system problems
  • People between the ages of 40 and 60 who do not have a compromised immune system may also be at risk for this type of eye cancer

Retinoblastoma

  • Children under the age of five (this type of eye cancer almost never occurs in adults)
  • Forty percent of cases are directly linked to the child’s genes so a family history of retinoblastoma is also a major risk factor.

Melanoma

  • Lighter eye colours, including blue and green, put people more at risk for ocular melanoma than people who have darker coloured eyes.
  • The presence of oculodermal melanocytosis (brown patches of pigmentation) on the uvea can also increase your risks of developing melanoma
  • Having a large number of irregular moles on their skin may be at a greater risk for both this type of eye and skin cancer
  • Exposure to UV light without proper eye protection, particularly before the age of 30, can increase your risk of melanoma
  • Welders may also have a greater risk of developing melanoma than people in other professions. The connection between welding and the cause of the cancer is not clear yet.

Risk Factors Associated with Extraocular Eye Cancer

Extraocular eye cancer affects the area surrounding the eye or the other parts of the eye, such as the optic nerves. Some of these conditions have similar risk factors, including family history. For example, basal cell carcinoma (a type of skin cancer that can sometimes develop on the eyelid) seems to be connected to a family history of skin cancer, as well as exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light.

In other cases, such as tumours on the optic nerves, the exact causes are not known so risk factors are hard to determine. In some cases, this type of cancer can be primary or secondary so if you have cancer elsewhere in your body, your risk of developing this form of extraocular eye cancer may be greater.

One of the more common types of extraocular eye cancer is squamous cell carcinoma. This develops in much the same way as basal skin cancer does but can sometimes affect the eye itself. Below are some of the risk factors for developing this type of eye cancer:

  • Compressed immune system thanks to HIV or AIDS
  • A family history of squamous cell carcinoma
  • Medications meant to compromise the immune system
  • Exposure to sunlight and its UV rays
  • Contracting the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) – the infection rate of this virus is very high so most researchers agree that other risk factors may need to be present as well as HPV.

Although there are several types of eye cancer, which have been discovered and diagnosed, many of the risk factors for these conditions are the same. For example, there is a clear connection between family history and an increased risk for many forms, including lymphoma. Exposure to UV rays without properly protecting your eyes can also significantly increase your risk of developing this type of cancer. If you have a compromised immune systems you are definitely going to be at greater risk because your body will be less likely to fight off the cancerous cells and to stop the out of control growth once it begins.

If you believe that you may be at risk of developing a type of eye cancer, you should seek medical advice.

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