Woman loses eye to rare melanoma after mistaking symptoms for lens issue

During a jog near her home in 2023, 48-year-old Tessa Parry-Wingfield experienced visual misalignment and booked an eye test, thinking her contact lenses needed adjustment. The optician’s scan uncovered an unusual freckle on the back of her left eye, prompting referral to an eye hospital and specialist confirmation of a pea-sized tumour - ocular melanoma. This rare eye cancer, responsible for roughly 600 UK cases each year, required removal of her left eye within weeks to stop potential spread, particularly to the liver.

Tessa now wears a custom acrylic prosthetic and urges others to attend bi-annual NHS eye exams, noting that many adults forgo checks because they feel fine. Experts stress that early detection through thorough retinal examinations can catch asymptomatic melanomas before they become life-threatening.