• By Dana Sparks

What is ocular melanoma?

August 19, 2019




Eye melanoma most often affects the middle layer of your eye (uvea). Parts of your eye's uvea that can develop melanoma include the colored portion of your eye (iris), the muscle fibers around your eye's lens (ciliary body), and the layer of blood vessels that lines the back of your eye (choroid).



  • A sensation of flashes or specks of dust in your vision (floaters)
  • A growing dark spot on the iris
  • Poor or blurry vision in one eye
  • Loss of peripheral vision


It's not clear what causes eye melanoma. Health care providers know that eye melanoma occurs when errors develop in the DNA of healthy eye cells. The DNA errors tell the cells to grow and multiply out of control, so the mutated cells go on living when they would normally die. The mutated cells accumulate in the eye and form an eye melanoma.

Where eye melanoma occurs

Eye melanoma most commonly develops in the cells of the middle layer of your eye (uvea). The uvea has three parts and each can be affected by eye melanoma:

  • The iris, which is the colored part in the front of the eye
  • The choroid layer, which is the layer of blood vessels and connective tissue between the sclera and the retina at the back of the uvea
  • The ciliary body, which is in the front of the uvea and secretes the transparent liquid (aqueous humor) into the eye.


Risk factors

  • Age. The risk of eye melanoma increases with age.
  • Exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. The role of ultraviolet exposure in eye melanoma is unclear. There's some evidence that exposure to UV light, such as light from the sun or from tanning beds, may increase the risk of eye melanoma.
  • Certain genetic mutations. Certain genes passed from parents to children may increase the risk of eye melanoma.


  • Vision loss. Large eye melanomas often cause vision loss in the affected eye and can cause complications, such as retinal detachment, that also cause vision loss.Small eye melanomas can cause some vision loss if they occur in critical parts of the eye. You may have difficulty seeing in the center of your vision or on the side. Very advanced eye melanomas can cause complete vision loss.

When to see a health care provider

Make an appointment with your health care provider if you have any signs or symptoms that worry you. Sudden changes in your vision signal an emergency, so seek immediate care in those situations.

Learn about diagnosis and treatment.


Related posts:
Mayo Clinic Q and A: Melanoma can begin in the eye
Living With Cancer: Melanoma can begin in the eye

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