Mum with rare eye cancer loses eye one week before giving birth to twins

Changes in vision during pregnancy can be a common occurrence, with around 15 per cent of expectant mothers experiencing changes to their vision or dry eyes due to the changes in hormones and blood circulation.

Unfortunately for Jessica Boesmiller, she was experiencing blurry vision while she was pregnant with her twins, but it turns out it was something a lot more sinister…

The North Carolina mum had a rare form of eye cancer in her right eye.

Mum with rare eye cancer loses eye one week after giving birth to twins

Jessica says she had always been healthy and had two healthy pregnancies with her two older sons before she fell pregnant with her twins.

One night as she was driving home her right eye seemed to be affected. She thought it might be a sign of pregnancy or preeclampsia, but after seeing her obstetrician she was advised to see an eye doctor.

It turned out she was suffering with ocular melanoma, a rare form of eye cancer. Melanoma – the deadliest form of skin cancer – can also develop inside your eye.

“It caught us unprepared. This was not something in our mind as a possibility,” Jessica told Today.

The tumour in Jessica’s eye was growing and putting pressure on her lens, causing her to have blurred vision.

Not wanting to harm her unborn twins, Jessica refused to have radiation therapy and instead had her eye removed on November 30th last year.

“I felt like this was the quickest way to get the babies safe as soon as possible,” she reveals.

“We didn’t know if there was metastasis to the rest of the body, but we knew that this was there and we knew that we could get rid of it.”

Three weeks later, Jessica gave birth to her twins, Piper and Mason, and luckily their placentas were negative for melanoma.

Thankfully, Jessica is recovering well and her family have been supporting her in solidarity. They’ve started a GoFund me page to help with medical costs.

The mum-of-four is now urging everyone to make appointments to have their own eyes checked.

Thank you so much Jessica for giving us permission to share your story, we’re glad to hear you are recovering well. Wishing you and your family all the best.

If you are concerned about your vision, experiencing dark spots, are sensitive to light, experience double vision or loss of eyesight, then we advise you see your eye doctor straight away.

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