Eye Cancer: Treatment Choices

The treatment choices for eye cancer depend on the size and location of the tumor, the results of lab tests, and the stage or extent of the disease. Your healthcare provider also considers the your age and general health when deciding on a treatment plan. Your healthcare provider will likely try to save your sight when thinking about different treatment options.




Treatment of eye cancer









This is the use of heat to destroy cancer cells.



Active surveillance or watchful waiting


Clinical trials



Treating specific types of eye cancer

Conjunctival tumors

Primary treatment for these tumors includes surgery. In some cases, your healthcare provider may do Mohs surgery. This involves removing very small, thin pieces of tissue and looking at them right away them under a microscope. If your healthcare provider sees cancer cells, he or she may remove more tissue. Once the tissue samples are clear of cancer cells, the procedure is done.

If the tumor is large, you may have cryotherapy. Researchers are also studying the use of chemotherapy (chemo) eye drops for people who have conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma (the drops are used after surgery) and for conjunctival melanoma. These may be options when there are tumors in several places on your eye.


Tumors in the iris

These are rare tumors. Treatment of these tumors depends on whether the tumor is growing. It also depends on whether there is any complication from the tumor, such as uncontrolled glaucoma. If you have glaucoma that does not get better with medicine or if the tumor is growing quickly, your healthcare provider may remove your entire eye (enucleation). If the tumor is not growing and the glaucoma can be controlled with medicine, you may need surgery to remove only the tumor. In some cases, you may need radiation.

Choroidal tumors


The treatment for choroidal melanomas can include thermal destruction (cryotherapy or photocoagulation), radiation, surgery to remove the tumor, or complete removal of your eye. Or you may not have any treatment at all. The choice depends on the size of the tumor, if it’s growing, and if you’re having symptoms. Talk about each option with your healthcare provider. Be sure to weigh all the risks and benefits of each choice. In some cases, you may need chemo.


Nevi in the eye is like freckles on your skin. They are very rare and almost never require treatment. But Nevi can turn into malignant melanoma. If they do, they are treated as malignant melanoma.

Cancers of the eyelid

Some types of cancer involve glands of the eyelid, such as the sebaceous gland. The treatment most commonly used for cancer of the eyelid is surgery. The goal of surgery is to remove all of the cancer. The type of surgery you have depends on the size of the tumor. If you need most of you eyelid removed, your healthcare provider will reconstruct it using plastic surgery. In some cases, you may need radiation. This can kill any cancer cells that may have been left behind.

Treatment side effects

Side effects of treatments for eye cancer depend on the type of treatment used, the type of cancer, and the part of the eye involved. Many types of cancer can affect the various structures of the eye. 

Your healthcare provider will try to treat your cancer so that your vision, appearance, and quality of life is affected as little as possible. He or she will only remove your eye if it’s the only way to fully remove the cancer.

If you need to have an eye removed, your healthcare provider will discuss the surgery and side effects with you. This surgery can affect your appearance, but there are ways to reconstruct your eye. You may need to see a plastic surgeon. Your healthcare provider may also suggest a prosthetic (artificial) eye, so that your appearance will not change drastically.
