October 2017 » New York Eye Cancer Center

The NYECC Support Group Therapy: A Recap!

Posted on October 27, 2017

The New York Eye Cancer Center Support Group, sponsored by the Eye Cancer Foundation, met for the second time on October 13, 2017. Members in attendance were in varying stages of their treatment and recovery, ranging from a few months to over a decade! Karen Campbell, a licensed clinical social worker with years of experience in oncology and vision loss, led the group in their discussion.

Group members shared the struggles of living with cancer and what their “new normal” is like, such as the need for ongoing scans and check-ups. Anxiety and depression around loss of control, feelings of isolation, and worries about the future were common themes, as was the need for ongoing support. Techniques for coping with these experiences and stressors were discussed and Karen lead the group in a guided imagery relaxation exercise that members found helpful.

Dr. Finger’s associate, Dr. Olszewski, was also in attendance and said, “Mental health is such an important part of overall well-being and quality of life, especially after a life changing diagnosis, such as ocular melanoma. We saw the perfect opportunity to introduce holistic care to the practice by starting this support group. Thanks to the support of the Eye Cancer Foundation, we are working hard to provide monthly group meetings for patients with this diagnosis. Karen Campbell is a natural fit for steering the meeting, given her experience in dealing with patients with both cancer and vision loss.

It was my pleasure to attend our second group session. Although I do not have a personal history ocular melanoma, I shared my experiences as a provider in this practice. I also have family members with cancer diagnoses and shared my feelings and point of view as a member of their support systems. I found Karen’s guided breathing exercises particularly enlightening; I felt an immediate wave of calm wash over me as she spoke, which stayed with me, even after I left the meeting. I truly believe that many of our patients would benefit from attending these group sessions.”

Stay tuned for an upcoming announcement regarding the date, time, and place of the next NYECC Support Group session.

The Eye Cancer Foundation Annual Appeal

Posted on October 19, 2017

As the year draws to close, as we round out the end of 2017 with holidays celebrating unity, generosity and love, now comes the time for reflection. The year 2017 marked great, landscaping efforts in the field of eye cancer research and training from The Eye Cancer Foundation, culminating perhaps most fantastically with the profound success of The Second Eye Cancer Working Day held in Sydney, Australia, among many other exciting projects. The achievements of this year have served as poignant reminders that hard work and focused philanthropy can support great progress. These accomplishments, shared throughout the buzzing Eye Cancer Foundation’s website, could not be completed without the generous help of donors. For this, the volunteers at The Eye Foundation are extremely grateful.

Your support enables The ECF team to provide much needed fellowship opportunities for new eye cancer specialists from previously unserved countries. As you may know, 7,000 babies with retinoblastoma die each year in the less developed world. The ECF has made a priority of training eye cancer specialists for these countries and will need to support them upon their return. The 2020 initiative , which aims to train 20 retinoblastoma doctors in 20 underserved countries, has already provided fellowship education for 12 deserving ophthalmologists. The ECF’s partnership with The International Council of Ophthalmology (ICO) enables this, ensuring the quality of training these fellows receive. It is through your support that these fellowships were established with success, and because of this, children who were born to less fortunate circumstances have a chance at vision and life.

The ECF is especially excited to have sponsored The Second Eye Cancer Working Day, an event bringing together eye cancer specialists from around the world, which embodied much of what The Foundation is all about. In the Working Day, there were sections on developing big data registries used to answer questions that could not be addressed by single center studies. There were initiatives for standards in fellowship education, Dr. Tero Kivelä presented an initiative to promote doctors reporting their clinical outcomes. In addition, The ECF’s open access surgical text and movie atlas was highlighted, and will become public within the next sixth months.

Your gift today demonstrates your dedication to supporting an exciting, functional, and deeply important effort to promote multi-center and international cooperation in ophthalmic oncology. Your gift today will save both vision and lives all over the world. With so much to look forward to, The ECF team hopes they can count on your support.

Please consider making your gift to The Eye Cancer Foundation today, and be a crucial part in this fight against eye cancer. Donate by visiting The Eye Cancer Foundation website, eyecancercure.com, or simply click here.

Eye Injections 101

Posted on October 12, 2017

An intraocular injection (i.e., an injection made directly into the eye) may sound intimidating, uncommon, and dangerous. But did you know that intraocular injections are one of the most common surgical procedures practiced today in the United States? These injections are used mostly to treat macular degeneration, a deterioration of the sensitive, central portion of the retina (the macula) that makes it the leading cause of vision loss in Americans, more than cataracts and glaucoma combined (American Macular Degeneration Foundation). In 2005, Dr. Paul T. Finger discovered that these intraocular injections can be used towards another effect: in the vision-sparing treatment of radiation retinopathy.

Radiation retinopathy, or neuropathy, occurs as a side effect of the radiation used to treat orbital tumors or melanoma. When radiated, the retina and optic nerve may be progressively damaged over time, which can lead to permanent loss of vision if left untreated. Thus, intraocular injections of ANTI-VEGF therapy, such as Avastin or Eyelea, can help to suppress this retina and optic nerve damage caused by radiation treatment.

At The New York Eye Cancer Center, we aim to provide you with the best possible information regarding intraocular injections to ease any misgivings. We are constantly monitoring our patients who have undergone treatment to watch for signs of radiation retinopathy, and if injections of ANTI-VEGF therapy are required. For these patients, we have published a video that provides all necessary information regarding their expected injections, and what they can expect before, during, and after therapy. We stress, particularly, that treating radiation retinopathy is similar to the concept of treating hypertension (high blood pressure) or diabetes; the drugs administered will diminish the damage for these long-term medical conditions.

You can watch this video below at your convenience:

Eye Injection: Intraocular Injection at The New York Eye Cancer Center from Paul T Finger on Vimeo.

We have more upcoming videos available for public viewing at The New York Eye Cancer, so kindly consider keeping eyecancer.com in your bookmarks to stay tuned for them!

New Details Regarding the NYECC Support Group!

Posted on October 10, 2017

As you may have read in our blog the week prior, The New York Eye Cancer Center is pleased to announce that we, with the support of The Eye Cancer Foundation, are hosting periodic group therapy sessions for our patients. Life after diagnosis and treatment of an ocular melanoma can cause stress and anxiety. Although it’s normal to feel this way, many people do find that having a solid support system is crucial in finding their bearings and coming to terms with “a new normal”, both of which are important in overall quality of life.

Friends and family can be excellent support systems, but there can also be a benefit to sharing your feelings with other patients who have had very similar experiences. The New York Eye Cancer Center Support Group is seeking to provide you with this emotional outlet. Our support group is facilitated by wonderful licensed clinical social worker, Karen Campbell.

You can find Karen’s short biography below:

“I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) and have been practicing in the field for 24 years. In addition to my private psychotherapy practice, most recently, I was in the Director of Vision Rehabilitation Services at the Lighthouse Guild. I started up the Social Work Department at Lighthouse International in 2010 and, as part of that, developed and faciliated the Department’s Support Group program. I also have a background in medical social work, including oncology, having worked at NYU/Langone. I have found support groups to be a valuable way for people to manage their medical challenges and address issues such as family adjustment, depression, anxiety and loss. Although I work primarily with individuals and couples in my private practice, I really enjoy working with groups!”

Karen brings to the practice her years of experience in counseling patients with both cancer and vision loss, making her a perfect fit for the NYECC family.

You can meet her and other patients at our next group therapy session at the NYECC on Friday, October 13, 2017 at 1:30 PM, Eastern Standard Time.

We hope to see you there!

And to stay updated on all upcoming sessions, please keep our website, eyecancer.com in your bookmarks!

Plaque Brachytherapy Can Now Help More Patients Facing Enucleation

Posted on October 6, 2017

Eye-sparing plaque brachytherapy can now help more patients with uveal melanoma versus enucleation.

The American Brachytherapy Society (ABS) reports that more patients with uveal melanoma will be able to spare their eye by widening the criteria for plaque brachytherapy.

It had been 10 years since guidelines for the treatment of uveal melanoma were published — but now, updated ABS consensus guidelines have been newly established by the ABS-Ophthalmic Oncology Task Force. Using clinical experience with eye cancer and knowledge of the literature, 47 radiation oncologists, medical physicists, and ophthalmic oncologists from 10 countries were able to produce these collaborative guidelines.

To view these published guidelines via PubMed, click here. For your convenience, we have here a summary of the updates ABS guidelines for plaque brachytherapy treatment:

Tumor classifications were updated to reflect the AJCC T-staging system.
Utilizing this system, T1, T2, T3, and T4a-d uveal melanoma patients can be treated, after counseling about likely vision, eye retention, and local control outcomes.
Small melanomas can be treated at the eye cancer specialist’s discretion (not only for evidence of growth)
Uveal melanomas near, touching (juxtapapillary) and surrounding (circumpapillary) the optic nerve can be treated with radiation therapy; however patients with tumors in this location as well as subfoveal tumors and those with exudative retinal detachments may have poorer vision outcomes and local control.
Extrascleral tumor extension does not exclude patients from plaque brachytherapy, unless they are classified as T4e (extraocular exrtension is >5mm in diameter).
Clinical diagnosis of uveal melanoma is still considered adequate for treatment (no change from 2003 guidelines). Histopathologic verification is not required.

The ABS recommends, additionally, that plaque procedures be performed in specialized centers with expertise in ophthalmic brachytherapy. Their report discusses guidelines for plaque and radionuclide selection (including dose prescription), and follow-up after brachytherapy.

Previously, some patients may have felt like enucleation was their only possible treatment, and undergoing a surgery to remove the eye is no easy decision. These new ABS guidelines will help to expand the number of patients eligible for plaque brachytherapy and reduce the number of patients requiring enucleation. With these results, some patients who fit these new criteria have been shown another avenue for hope. And for one’s journey through eye cancer treatment, hope is exceptionally valuable.

Come back next week at eyecancer.com for more information regarding enucleation vs. plaque brachytherapy!