Eye problems???

CR1954

Has anyone else experienced eye problems during chemo?

My eyes are so very dry that it is hard to keep them open at times. It makes me feel tired, even when I am not.

Going to get some lubricating eye drops or artificial tears, but just wondering if this is an unusual problem, or something fairly common...

CR

Irishwhispers

Eyes dry
Hi n hugs!

Seems like mine are the opposite.. teary eyes
but, not real bad, but, just a word of precaution ask your oncologist about it, and see if your chemo treatment is the cause, and what he/she suggests.

Never hurts to be safe.

Good luck with your treatments!


Trish

chenheart

Dry Eyes
I also had the opposite problem, namely profuse watering. I posted earlier that I tried to wear eye makeup, so as not to look so pale and, lets face it~Chemo-like. The eye makep running down my face in black streaks was not quite the effect I was going for! In hindsight, maybe it DID deflect attention away from my tiny bandana-swathed head! Gosh, another blessing...NOT! :-)

Check with your Dr on that one; who knows just how we will react to the poison killing the beast. Let us know, will you? It will be of great help to the next person with dry eyes!

Hugs,
Claudia

CR1954

Thanks!
Yes, thank you! I will check with the doctor on Tuesday!

I quickly looked up eye problems on chemocare.com, and it mentioned both watering eyes and dry eyes. Until I can check with the doctor, I will just try some lubricating eye drops and hope that helps. I don't think it's any kind of an infection, but one can never be too careful.

Thank you again friends!

Hugs to all!
CR

nancyh1314

CR1954 said:

Thanks!
Yes, thank you! I will check with the doctor on Tuesday!

I quickly looked up eye problems on chemocare.com, and it mentioned both watering eyes and dry eyes. Until I can check with the doctor, I will just try some lubricating eye drops and hope that helps. I don't think it's any kind of an infection, but one can never be too careful.

Thank you again friends!

Hugs to all!
CR

Dry Eyes
I experienced dry eyes that were particularly bothersome when I was at work in our production environment. I came to realy appreciate the function of eyelashes and eyebrows (when I lacked both) in keeping irritants out of the eyes. I could feel the difference in different environments. It might be as simple as that for you combined with a little general dryness from chemo.

Best always !

Nancy

KathiM

nancyh1314 said:

Dry Eyes
I experienced dry eyes that were particularly bothersome when I was at work in our production environment. I came to realy appreciate the function of eyelashes and eyebrows (when I lacked both) in keeping irritants out of the eyes. I could feel the difference in different environments. It might be as simple as that for you combined with a little general dryness from chemo.

Best always !

Nancy

Me, too...
My dry eyes were a bother. I also experience some vision changes. I had it checked out with an eye doctor, and he said I was fine. I used artificial tears to help.

Wow, Nancy! Never thought this could have been related to lack of lashes, but it makes perfect sense!

Hugs, Kathi

CR1954

Yes, exactly...
I also am to the point where I am having visions problems....aside from the fact that it is difficult to keep my eyes open for long, because of the dryness.

I did consult the onc and he said to continue with the artificial tears, but use them frequently. So far, it's a bit better.

Onwards and upwards!

Thank you all!
CR

BillKav

The Eyes Have It
I'm so glad to "see" that someone else has this problem. I have asked three oncologists and they all said they have never heard of eye problems. I went to an opthamologist and he said my eyes are fine, just a bit dry from the chemo, so he gave me artificial tears. They don't seem to do anything.

My eyes are always at half mast, they are very sensitive to light, they seem to always be very tired, and often have trouble focusing. But the doctor says they're fine.

CR1954

In the end...
In the end, both the onc and my eye doctor had me using artificial tears NUMEROUS times a day. As often as every hour or so.

And my vision became extremely blurry over a matter of weeks, to where I was concerned about driving (never mind trying to watch tv ot use the computer).
My eye doctor said that my vision had declined significantly, but inasmuch as I already wear glasses, he strengthened the prescription and now I can see again. Just hoping now that it doesn't get worse, yet again.

My onc said that the drugs will effect the eyes in some people, while others never have a problem. I guess we fit that category...

Hang in there!!

CR

mgm42

Yes, I experienced dry eyes, too. It lasted for about one month, then just seemed to gradually disappear. My PA told me to use artificial tears several times a day. I did. It wasn't great, but helped some. However, as I already mentioned, it did go away within a month and then - just wasn't there and my eyes returned to normal. hang in there. Marilynn

mayo

eyes
I also had a similar problem, i would have described it as my eyes watering but it was a thicker secretion ( this happened whhile i was receiving A/C and went away when A/C was completed ) My onc seemed perplexed and sent me to an eye doctor. my eyes constantly bothered me thick drainage, crusted in the morning and painful in sunlingt. The eye doctor said that the eyes were actually very dry and prescribed lubricating drops and antibiotic drops which really did nothing only the completion of A/C helped

mmontero38

I finished chemo last
I finished chemo last November and still have extreme dry eyes. I think not only did the chemo influence this problem, but the Tamoxifen is no help either. My opthamologist also said lubricating drops and if that doesn't work then plugging the tear ducts might help. We'll see how I progress with this. Hugs, Lili

cruf

mmontero38 said:

I finished chemo last
I finished chemo last November and still have extreme dry eyes. I think not only did the chemo influence this problem, but the Tamoxifen is no help either. My opthamologist also said lubricating drops and if that doesn't work then plugging the tear ducts might help. We'll see how I progress with this. Hugs, Lili

Dry Eyes
I also had dry eyes from Aromatose inhibitors. I had dry spots on my corneas.The MD plugged my tear ducts. The Lt eye stayed in for about 1 year. My Rt tear duct is plugged on the lower lid so he plugged the upper duct but had to take it out cause it irritated the eye. My Rt eye runs all the time but I still had dry spots. I was taking Refresh eye drops and then the MD added Restasis 2 times a day. It took several mos. but the dry spots cleared up. I'm still taking the drops in my Lt eye. Good luck. Cathy

phoenixrising

"My eyes are always at half mast, they are very sensitive to light, they seem to always be very tired, and often have trouble focusing. But the doctor says they're fine." Add burning to that and that's what I was experiencing 6 mos after chemo and into Tamoxifen.

For me it was the Tamoxifen and why I went off it. Drops didn't help much at all. I just couldn't work like that. I've been off Tamox for about 6 weeks now and am noticing more improvements all the time. Problem is, I need to be on something.

During chemo they watered. Everyone is scratching their heads like I'm the first person to ever have this. Thank you ladies for letting me know I'm not alone.

jan

MSCHO

phoenixrising said:

"My eyes are always at half mast, they are very sensitive to light, they seem to always be very tired, and often have trouble focusing. But the doctor says they're fine." Add burning to that and that's what I was experiencing 6 mos after chemo and into Tamoxifen.

For me it was the Tamoxifen and why I went off it. Drops didn't help much at all. I just couldn't work like that. I've been off Tamox for about 6 weeks now and am noticing more improvements all the time. Problem is, I need to be on something.

During chemo they watered. Everyone is scratching their heads like I'm the first person to ever have this. Thank you ladies for letting me know I'm not alone.

jan

Eye problems
Hello to everyone "out there" in this discussion:

ONE DRY, ONE TEARY:
For whatever it's worth, I had one each -- one really dry and one really teary eye. Odd thing is that, before cancer, my left eye used to give me trouble now and then because of an encounter I had as a late teen with airborne paint from a spray can someone held in the wind. I was on antibiotic drops off and on for many years when my left eye gave me trouble -- which seemed more frequent with each passing year. My ophthalmologist has monitored me closely for this. Then cancer came, and chemo, and surgery, and more chemo, and radiation. My eyes reacted differently to each form of treatment and its related medicines. Now, on the other side, I can say that chemo seems to have killed off whatever was plaguing me in my left eye. But it's left me some conundrums with my right.

LOSS OF FOCUS:
During my first wave of chemo, both of my eyes watered profusely. Then they just burned, whether they were dry or watery -- they just burned. But the most marked thing I noticed during treatment and for some time after was that I could not get them to focus normally.

NO TAKERS:
And no one would believe me.

BOOKS ON TAPE:
It didn't take long to decide that they didn't have to in order for me to cut myself a break. I love to read, but couldn't, easily, during treatment. So, I picked up some books on tape. I wasn't going to let cancer get away with stealing books from me.


SENSITIVITY TO SUN, AIR AND LIGHT

AIR MOVEMENT AND LIGHT: WRAP-AROUND SUNGLASSES:
I'm naturally fair-skinned, and so am sensitive to light, generally, but I was HYPER-sensitive to light during treatment. I found that a pair of $12.00 dark polaroid sunglasses from the pharmacy that wrapped around the sides to help shield peripheral vision, as well as front, really helped me manage the burning and light-sensitivity -- even indoors. If you've never experienced it, polaroid lenses (like what you'd wear fly fishing or something) really cut glare. But I'm sure any kind of wrap-around glasses, like even what bicyclists wear, would have helped.

SUN, AIR MOVEMENT AND LIGHT: SUN-PROTECTION CLOTHING:
I also read up on what the skin cancer recommendations are for sun protection in hats -- four inch brim minimum all around. I picked up one that was rated to SPF 45, made sure it had a dark (not light) colored under-brim, and wore it outside everywhere. Man! That helped immediately -- not only with light, but with air movement.

INVESTIGATE "MEDICAL EQUIPMENT" ANGLE IF YOU WISH:
Plus, depending on your circumstances and where you get them, sun-protection items like specially designed hats and shirts can sometimes be considered "medical equipment" or a "medical device." If you meet the medical and tax criteria, it's possible and you can throw that bill into the pile of other medical bills at tax time. You have to look into it and do your research, and check current federal and state tax law (I'm no CPA) -- but I'm just saying, take a gander, to those who are of a mind to look into it. I found this very helpful.

CHARMING SUN THINGS:
In my case, during radiation, I broke into hives every time I went into the sun. So, my radiation doctor gave me a prescription for a sun-protection shirt and hat of SPF 45 or greater. The added benefit to me, personally, was how greatly that hat helped me manage some of my eye issues. Eventually, a few months after radiation treatment stopped, I stopped breaking out in hives when I went outside. But I still wear the hat to protect the fair skin I have, and to help shield air movement from the top of my sunglasses. This helps with the dry teary burning responses still in my right eye.

AIR MOVEMENT: SAFETY GLASSES:
For me, during treatment, and sometimes even now, it felt like every small stirring of air threw some foreign thing into my eyes, and they were off to the burning races again; dry one moment, weeping the next. For a while, I even wore either clear or tinted safety glasses in the office, and then around the house (weird, I know, but it helped) when the AC or the heat was on. I found a pair of safety glasses that had some protection from the top, which seemed to help with unseen particulate or air movement that came from ceiling vents and the like.

For me, safety glasses and the little $12.00 sunglasses from the pharmacy just happened to be the only larger-lens type of glasses I could find that shielded my eyes peripherally from both light and air movement.

GENERAL VISION:
My ophthalmologist recommended that I NOT get my refraction tested until treatment was over and my eyes had a chance to adjust to whatever would become "normal" after treatment. Without eyebrows or eyelashes, the little extra peripheral and front-facing protection of the sunglasses and safety glasses helped reel the burning and watering back into some kind of manageable state.

ANTI-HISTAMINE:
I also found that Benadryl was helpful on occasion. I can't stand taking pills or medicine, but sometimes I couldn't turn the spigot off any other way. You bet I cleared that with my doctors, first, though. You should, too, if you're considering it.

STINTS IN THE TEAR DUCTS:
One doctor suggested having stints put in my tear ducts, but I couldn't bear doing that. A few folks I knew went for it, and some swore by it, and one, I know, regretted it. That's a very personal decision. I just didn't feel it was one for me at the time I was given the choice.

A SLOW RETURN TO WHATEVER NORMAL IS:
My course of treatment was chemo, surgery, chemo and radiation. My last treatment was in 2005. Only in about the last year has my body let me have some of my eyes back the way I remember them. I can read again, but not for very long periods of time before the focus leaves again -- and it's not a "normal" loss of focus, like near-sightedness or far-sightedness. It's the same blur from chemo days. I figure it'll continue to decrease in frequency as time goes on.

I can be hopeful, anyway.

But my right eye still burns and weeps a lot. My eyebrows and eyelashes have still not come back. A lot of my hair has not come back -- and what did doesn't exactly seem like hair to me. I'm told this is pretty rare -- to still have such a thin amount of hair on top, and a handful of very blonde eyebrow hairs and no eyelashes, three years after treatment stopped. I'm not on anything else, and haven't been. Sometimes I miss my dark red hair -- I had thick strands and a thick amount. But, in the end, I figure, better bald than dead.

TEARS AND DROPS:
The eye thing though -- from chemo to now, I've been using artificial tears as much to wash particulate out of my eyes as to lubricate them when they're burning from dryness or "wateriness." My ophthalmologist, oncologist and radiation doctor each recommended artificial tears separately, for their own reasons. My ophthalmologist also prescribed a low-dosage antibiotic for when I'm combating infection from the persistent challenges to my eyes.

AGREEING TO DISAGREE:
I still see my oncologist every three months. And I still don't think he believes me about the lapses in ability to focus my eyes as having anything to do with chemo or cancer treatment. That's okay -- truly. He saved my life, and I don't think I could ever pay him the debt of gratitude I feel for all his expertise. He doesn't HAVE TO believe me about my eyes. But I also know my body, and I know what's different, and I know what triggered the difference -- whether it's written in a medical journal or not.

REFRACTION:
My ophthalmologist has monitored me closely all along. We haven't changed my pre-chemo prescription yet (for eyeglasses) because we're still watching things settle down bit by bit, and it doesn't seem to have changed, even though my ability to focus still comes and goes in brief spurts -- more so when I'm tired or stressed, but even when I am not.

CHALLENGES TO ELASTICITY:
As with any fast-growing cell tissue, skin and mucous membranes are challenged considerably during chemo, and skin and membranes that form eyelids are part of that. I have a microscopic droop, or "pucker," to my lower right lid now that I didn't have before. It happens during normal aging processes, to be sure -- but my "process" was chemically accelerated. I have an ever-so-slight droop to my right lower lid that I didn't have before chemo, and, without eyelashes to form a natural "catcher's mitt," the slight droop forms a kind of pocket that catches things the air throws at it. This makes my eye more prone to burning, watering and infection.

POSSIBLE LONG TERM OPTION IF NOTHING CHANGES:
My ophthalmologist has suggested that if the elasticity doesn't return (she didn't seem as hopeful as I was willing to be) that a surgical procedure to "tighten" the lower lid up to the eyeball again might provide the only long-term relief. But, gadzooks, I just can't handle another knife cutting on me again. Not yet. Sometime, someday, maybe. But not yet. I have some friends who think I'm nuts to pass up the chance to have my lids "done." I'm just not there yet. I keep thinking my body might rally a little more -- that I just need to keep giving it a chance. I still notice subtle changes toward "normalcy," and don't want to hinder its progress by shocking my system some more.

CONTINUING TO MONITOR A WHILE LONGER:
I'll have to do the lid thing if I have to -- but I don't have to yet. For now, I keep the artificial tears and mild antibiotic drops handy and use them as recommended and prescribed. Heck -- I looked part blood-hound during chemo, and I don't now, so I know elasticity can return. I just prefer to give it as much chance as possible, as long as my long-term vision is not threatened -- which, so far, all tests show it is not.

A MOSTLY UNHEARD AND, THEREFORE, UNTOLD STORY:
I don't know if this information helps anyone. I hope it does. I feel a little odd sharing it, because this is such a strange medium for me, and I don't talk a lot about my cancer-related experiences or journey. Fact is, a few folks I know, do not mind if I say soemthing once in a while. But most folks I know don't want to hear it -- I'm better, and that's good enough. And it is. It really is. I don't expect folks who haven't gone through it to "get it." Only someone who's traversed that unenviable ground truly "gets it." We are, each of us, the unwilling members of a club we wish for no one else to have to join. Ever.

BE CAREFUL:
If anyone is reading this who is newly diagnosed, or just out of treatment -- don't take this hair and eyelash and eyebrow thing onto yourself. Please. My experience after treatment is not the "norm." Of the couple hundred women I've personally met or been near who went through chemo to combat breast cancer or other cancer, I'm the only one I've known who is three years out of treatment, including any ongoing chemo or hormonal maintenance or the like, who looks like I'm only a month or two out from treatment. Seriously -- don't take my strange experience on as your future or your fear. It's just a bend in my own road that most other folks don't have to take, and is not necessarily part of the map your body will follow. I only shared about the hair and eyelash part for the sake of folks dealing with eye issues. I know, for myself, the chemo chemistry caused some of my issues during treatment. But, as important a contributor to my eye issues, I believe, was (and is) both the loss of elasticity that comes with chemo, and not having eyelashes and eyebrows. As I mentioned, my cancer doctors don't think chemo had, nor has, anything to do with it. Personally, I do, because I knew my body well before cancer, and I still know it now.

GRATEFUL FOR EVERY IMPROVEMENT:
So, to the one tempted to take on what is very specific to me, please do not. It's not worth the extra stress or fear. I can assure you, it gets better -- even the eye and hair stuff. In my case, it just gets better over a much longer period of time. Heck, I get my hair cut every three months now instead of every five. That's a hopeful thing. And I don't wear safety glasses in the office anymore just to fend off the vents. My body just happens to be really slow climbing back up some of these hills we all took for granted B.C. (before cancer) -- but I'm glad for the journey onward just the same, whatever its speed.

BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS:
To the one who finds any encouragement in anything I wrote -- really, I mean it, God bless you, friend. Encouragement is enough in itself and something to greatly enjoy. One of its meanings is, "To be strengthened with courage." May each of you who have taken the time to read this be so.

THANK YOU:
Gosh -- sorry I blabbered on so long. It's probably the quietness of the hour, or the hope that you don't really mind. Whatever it is, I really appreciate the time each of you took to even read this or let any of it be of any consequence or encouragement to you, even if that encouragement was simply to hear a part of another's story along the way.

God bless each of you in your journey.

Maggie