Delayed diagnosis of eye melanomas

Some New Yorkers who have melanoma of the eyes are not diagnosed correctly at first. When there is a delayed diagnosis of this cancer, the patients may suffer substantial harm or death. Some people may not get diagnosed until the cancer is more advanced because they don't recognize their own symptoms and fail to get checked.

People who have melanoma of the eye may experience such things as blurred vision, bulging eyes, problems with the way that their eyes move in their sockets, changed pupil sizes, dark spots on the iris and other problems. Many may not feel pain until the cancer is advanced.

People who notice changes in their eyes should schedule appointments with ophthalmologists. An eye doctor may use special medical instruments that allow him or her to look inside of the eye. In most cases, eye doctors are able to diagnose eye melanomas by performing eye exams. In some cases, however, they may need to use diagnostic tests such as ultrasounds to confirm their diagnoses. It is rare for the doctors to need to take biopsies to diagnose eye melanomas.

A delayed diagnosis of eye melanoma can be devastating, causing the patient to lose an eye or for the cancer to spread. When this happens, the patient may want to think about filing a lawsuit against the doctor for medical malpractice in order to hold the doctor financially responsible. This may allow the victim to recover monetary damages to compensate for all of the losses that were suffered as a result of the delayed diagnosis. Experienced medical malpractice lawyers may consult with medical experts in order to determine whether or not valid grounds exist to support such a lawsuit.