I just thought I would relate my most recent experience with this c…y disease as it may be useful information for others.
About the end of August beginning of September I noticed difficulty in focusing when reading even with my 1.5 magnification reading glasses. It seemed to be only one eye. It never occurred to me to mention this at my check up appointment with my Onc on 10th September as I had made appointment with my optician to see if I needed new glasses!
15th September - Optician refers me to the Hospital as something wrong with the ‘macular’ area of my left eye.
4th October - Consultant diagnoses a tumour in my left eye and refers me ‘urgently’ to Royal Liverpool Hospital Specialist Eye Research Centre.
18th October - Definitely breast cancer met in left eye but conclusion is that they are usually successfully ‘melted’ away with radiotherapy.
Symptoms, other than blurred vision, has been slightly watery eye that is a bit crusty when I wake up in the morning. Also aching, feeling of pressure in left eye, all of which has gotten worse over the last 3-4 weeks.
I had an MRI scan done last week but that wasn’t needed so I am still waiting to hear if there is anything ‘else’ going on in my head! We shall see. But overall I was just relieved that there was something that could be done about it.
So sorry to hear your story. It sounds pretty grave for you.
I hope treatment can be planned quickly and successfully for you.
Sending good wishes. Good luck.
Hi Sue
Also really sorry to hear about your eye mets. I wanted to let you know that my sister had an eye (ocular melanoma)and was treated at the Royal Liverpool Hospital. I went with her to the appointment and basically we were given a few treatment options. They admitted her that day, she had surgery to place a radioactive plaque onto the area, this was left in for 2 or 3 days and then they removed the plaque. She was in hospital the whole time and there was more discomfort than anything else. Her eye was quite red and swollen for a while after and we were warned that she may lose a very small amount of sight although it would be negligible. Anyway all went well, she is now all clear and this was about 2 years ago. Hope this helps a little and again sorry you’re having to go through this.
Amy x
Thank you for your good wishes. The Drs were quite confident of a successful outcome to my problem. They are certain that it is breast cancer that has spread to my eye and that a dose of radiotherapy will melt it away. This should be done next week and I will find out on Friday just what it entails.
Really pleased that this news can be followed up really quickly.
What an awful worry this has been for you…
I’m sure the radiotherapy will be pretty scary for you but your consultant sounds very positive.
Well, got through yesterday. Funeral in the morning for my friend Nicky who died on 12th October after 7 years of treatment for breast cancer. Then hospital for the results of my MRI and plan of treatment. The good news is that there was nothing else on the MRI apart from the tumour in my eye.
So, I start on Monday with scan of eye and then they will make a plastic mask of my face that they will then use to pin me to the table whilst they zap me with the radiotherapy. My tumour is 10mm by 5 mm, it’s a wonder I can see anything at all out of my left eye! I will be getting a daily dose for 5 days from next Thursday.
They have told me that the lens is very sensitive to radiotherapy so I may develop a cataract after the treatment but they can deal with that quite ‘easily’! I will feel tired, my eye may swell a bit and the vision get worse before it gets better. I just can’t wait to get it dealt with as it is starting to become uncomforatble and is very annoying.
Then CT scan on Wednesday this week to see what other progression there is and results of that on 5th November. So a busy 2 weeks ahead. So a quiet weekend for me.
Hi SusieV,
I have been reading your posts w interest- and twice posted a comment which must have disapeared into cyberspace as they are not on here??? I wish you good luck for your mask, treatment etc!I will be thinking of you!
I think we are in a similar boat; I had an MRI scan on Thurs and my oncologist rang me yesterday to say that; like you, I have a tumour at the back of my right eye; I will have my mask/mold made on Thursday and start radiotherapy on Friday; first session out of four on consecutive working days. I am also having chemo for my stomach/liver at the mo but he said it will all fit in so I haven’t panicked.Yet! I was relieved that there were no other visible tumours in my head, brain etc.It seems the treatment for the bone mets diagonosed in March will take a back seat for the mo. I cannmot wait to have the eye tumour zapped as it now is causing me quite a bit of trouble w reading, watching tv etc.
Sending you lots of love. You are in my thoughts.Bea.xx
The mask fitting and planning went okay yesterday. I am due to start the radiotherapy on Thursday and have 5 doses scheduled for consecutive working days. I am already taking some steroid tablets to clear up an inflammation in my veins due to my last lot of chemo etc and so need to keep taking those whilst havingthis treatment as apparently it helps to control the swelling/discomfort that can be caused by the treatment. They reassure me that my eye would not ‘look’ swollen and bulging - thank goodness, I am having enough trouble with my stomach from all the chocolate that keeps slipping into my mouth!
I am glad that you have been given the all clear in the rest of your head too. It was quite a relief to hear that for me too!
Good luck on Thursday, we can compare notes as we go along.
Hi Sue and Beatrice
Good luck with both of you having your treatments. Must be very scary but it sounds like the rads will do the trick. Can you keep the masks for Halloween Let’s hope this round of treatment is as quick as it sounds and you both are on the road to recovering your full eyesight asap.
Sue - I hope the CT scan today (?) doesn’t throw up any nasties either - fingers crossed for you.
Nicky xx
Just catching up with your news. Hope the scan went ok today and wishing you all the luck in the world for the rads tomorrow and following days. Thinking of you. Give me a shout when you’re up to meeting again. xx
Hi SusieV,
Back agaion; I got a chestinfection last w/e so ended up in hospital and my oncologist suggested that we brought forward all the treatment for my eye so have had it al;ll done this week and didn’t think it was bad at all.Starpping down the head to teh table the first time came as a bit of a shock/suprprise- how very firmly attached I was!- but the treatments were a doddle. I am not expecting any severe side effects; maybe a bit of pain and swelling but it should all be gone in a week or two the radiographer said.
NOw the next and 3rd chemo for my stomach/liver mets will take place on Tuesday- I had a CT scan while in hospital this week and it showed only slight improvement in those areas so I am a bit concerned about that but I suppose it is early days yet.The bonecancer has been put on the “back burner” for the time being; I even ahd to come off Bondronate cos of my low calcium levels.I must admit that it all seems a bit hopeless and futile at times and it is hard to keep going but my son gets married next year so his wedding is my goal!Lotsaluv.xx
What a bad time you are going through Beatrice but at least the eye mets have been zapped. I hope your eyesight improves quickly and the rest of your treatment is successful, or they change you to another form of chemo if this current one isn’t giving the right improvements.
Good Luck
Nicky xx
I’ve just had a real health scare with my eye. Real strange constant pain behind my eye, spoke to optician asap who said she could detect a ‘mass’ behind my eye!
Obviously I thought the very worst! Hospital tests detected it was only a pressure build up behind eye and it can be treated with time…
The shock of it all was immense and I thought of you ladies here going through eye mets.
The thought of eye treatment has always made me squirm because of my total ignorance! I was amazed when I first read this thread that BC could transfer to this organ. Now I have the utmost respect for your determination to plan treatment asap.
You’ve all gone through the fear,waiting and treatment to sort out your eye mets. I only want to wish you well and trust your recovery can be straightforward. I truly respect your courage and to think I was only reading this site a couple of weeks ago!!!
Best wishes to you all again. xx
Well, all going okay here. I have had two doses to my eye and so have three more to go this week. I had my CT scan on Wednesday so will get the results of that on Friday this week if not before. Apparently, just beacuse I have the tumour in my eye it doesn’t neccessarily mean that there will have been progression again where the tumours were before. So, we shall just have to see.
Like you Beatrice, I have not experienced any noticeable side effects yet but from past experience of radiotherapy I know that it can effect you more after the treatment has actually finished. I remember feeling very tired about a week after I had the dose to my spine about this time last year but it passes. I am more concerned about what will show up on the CT scan.
Welsh girl you seem to have the reverse experience of me. My optician told me he couldn’t see any tumours but that there was something leaking into the macular area of my eye. Then the Dr at the hospital told me there was a tumour. So I was sort of lulled into a false sense of security. Whatever, it is not nice. I have a couple of mates who have glaucoma, that has something to do with pressure in their eyes, and the drops they have been given to use have given them the most fantastic long and thick eyelashes, I am quite envious! Meanwhile I shall look a right mess soon as I will probably lose the eyelashes on the eye they are treating. I will have to get some falsies!
Hi everyone,
I was really interested/surpised by all you postings re. eye mets. 2weeks ago I began to get blurred then double vision. I convinced myself that it would resolve itself but by I was having to have help crossing the road as I couldn’t judge the distance of vehicles and there were two of everything! On my way back from London where I’d been for a 4 day break I decided to call into A&E (it was weekend). After a 3 hour wait I was seen by the Dr. and he did lots of tests, looked at a head scan I’d had 4 weeks previously, and then got me appt with opthalmic cons 2 days later. He did loads of test but couldn’t decide what was causing the problem so have to see orthoptic man and then cons again next week. In the meantime he advised me not to drive! This has been a real problem as I do all the driving!
Anyway, after all this rambling, what I really wanted to say was, I never considered that my problem could be caused by a met in my eye,
been to onc today and she didn’t mention this either, although she did show me MRI that I had last week which showed that skull mets were now in the cerebral fluid at the front of my skull. How common are mets in the eye?
Sorry to hear you are having problems with your eyes too. I don’t know how common it is. Certainly my BCN hasn’t come across it before but I did get a reply from someone else on here who had been a nurse at the Eye clinic in Liverpool (I think) and she said that she had come across it before.
I had my last radiotherapy blast last Wednesday and I am starting to see a slight improvement. The vision is still blurred but I no longer have a complete blind spot. So, fingers crossed that it continues to improve over the next week or so whilst the radiotherapy is still working. Anywy, I start chemo again tomorrow so that will probably finish the little blighter in my eye off.
Really glad that your radiotherapy has helped so far and wanted to wish you well for your forthcoming chemo.
Thinking of you and hoping you will post again so we can support you as you progress…
Total respect to you as you cope with all this.
Very best wishes from Welsh girl x
Thanks for your support. We all deal with so much bad news that even the most dreadful things start to feel like routine. This will be my third lot of chemo starting tomorrow. The worst bit is always telling my parents and my Mum saying things like ‘how awful you having to go through it again’ and ‘it should be me, I’ve had my life’ (she is 70 in December, which still isn’t that old in the scheme of things). I must admit to feeling a bit cheated as both sides of my family tend to live well into their 80’s and 90’s! Even going back to the 1700’s in the family tree. Obviously I have had a far too cushy life! A bit of hard graft might have kept me right! Ha, Ha!!!
I will keep you posted on developments. But how is your eye, have they given you any treatment for it? Whatever, I hope it is all okay now or on the way to being so.
Let’s hope this round of treatment is as quick as it sounds and you both are on the road to recovering your full eyesight asap.