In patients with a previous
history of breast cancer who complain even of mild ophthalmologic symptoms such
as local pain, periorbital edema, it is important to consider ocular or orbital
metastatic disease. Ocular metastasis from breast cancer is usually preceded by
metastasis to other organs, primarily the lungs. Prospective screening has
shown that choroidal metastases are found more frequently in patients already
known to have metastasis in other organ systems. At the time of diagnosis of
ocular metastasis, 85% of patients also have pulmonary involvement.
Though not a common side effect,
breast cancer treatment may affect your eyes, including your vision. A few
things you can do if you are taking medication to treat breast cancer to
improve your ocular symptoms are:
- · Wash your hands often.
- · Don’t rub or touch your eyes unless you are cleaning your eye area.
- · Discontinue contact lens use till the treatment is over.
- · Supplement your tears with over the counter artificial tears up to 6x daily. Using these artificial tears once a day just isn’t enough to provide relief.
- · See your eye doctor quickly if you notice any changes to your vision while you are undergoing treatment.
- ·
Schedule your eye appointment with your eye
doctor to review in office imaging of your retina to monitor any retinal
changes, OCT imaging is available to document any macular problems. Also, your
doctor can discuss other dry eye treatments available.
Eye problems may include:
- · red, itchy, or dry eyes
- · watery eyes
- · conjunctivitis (pink eye)
- · blurry or double vision
- · seeing dark spots
Breast cancer treatments that may cause eye problems are:
·
chemotherapy:
- · fluorouracil (also called 5-fluorouracil or 5-FU; brand name: Adrucil)
- · Ixempra (chemical name: ixabepilone
- · Taxotere (chemical name: docetaxel)
·
some hormonal therapies:
- · Aromasin (chemical name: exemestane)
- · Evista (chemical name: raloxifene)
- · Fareston (chemical name: toremifene)
- · tamoxifen
·
Avastin (chemical name: bevacizumab), a targeted
therapy
· Zometa (chemical name: zoledronic acid) and
Reclast (a different formulation of zoledronic acid), bone-strengthening
medications known as bisphosphonates
·
Some pain medications also can cause eye
problems.
Managing eye problems
If you have vision problems, it
can be a sign of a more serious medical condition. Call your doctor right away
if you notice that you're having trouble seeing or if your vision changes.
If your eyes are dry, red, or itchy:
- · Try to blink frequently, especially if you spend long hours looking at a computer screen. This can help lubricate your eyes.
- · Ask your doctor if artificial tears or eye drops would help soothe your eyes.
- · Consider wearing your glasses instead of contact lenses — not wearing contact lenses may help ease eye irritation.
To help reduce your risk of getting pink eye or another eye infection:
- · Avoid rubbing your eyes — you could spread germs into your eye or make any irritation worse.
- · Wash your hands before you touch your eyes.
