The little spot just didn''t look right. The optometrist noticed a "freckle" on the retina of Loretta Needham''s right eye and immediately sent her to an ophthalmologist to check it out. Needham, 64, of Eldon, Mo., wasn''t especially worried at the time. She just figured her age and 40 years of accounting work had taken a toll on her eyes.
She was a little more concerned when the ophthalmologist, located in Jefferson City, Mo., recommended she see one of the Washington University eye doctors at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, whose nationally-recognized expertise in treating a range of eye disorders would ensure that Needham''s "freckle" was diagnosed and treated promptly.
Needham saw Dr. Matthew Thomas of the Barnes Retina Institute. After examining Needham, he asked her to wait a few minutes.
"He told me not to get excited, yet, but to let him see if Dr. Harbour was in the office," Needham said. She knew then that she may have eye cancer. "I had read all the brochures in the waiting room before my appointment and all about the different doctors at the Barnes Retina Institute. When I heard Dr. Harbour''s name, I knew what that meant."
Dr. William Harbour, one of the leading ocular oncologists in the Midwest, examined Needham and confirmed that she had retinal melanoma, a rare cancer, but the most common eye cancer in adults in the U.S.
In the past, enucleation, or removal of the eye, was the standard treatment for this type of cancer. But Dr. Harbour told Needham that he thought he could save her eye and her peripheral eyesight if he treated her with brachytherapy -- placing a radioactive plaque directly on the lesion for a period of time to eradicate the tumor.
Needham was admitted to Barnes-Jewish Hospital on a Friday and Dr. Harbour attached the plaque to her retina during a short procedure under general anesthesia. Needham spent the weekend in the hospital. Dr. Harbour removed the plaque on Tuesday and Needham was home on Wednesday.
The prospect of fighting cancer and losing her sight was "really, really scary," Needham said. But Dr. Harbour "showed me where the melanoma was located on my eye. Then he explained the whole procedure in language you can understand."
And the staff made sure Needham and her family were comfortable and confident about the process, helping her plan logistics and negotiate insurance difficulties.
Other than a couple of visits after the procedure to address a minor complication, Needham, with her eye and peripheral vision intact, comes to Barnes-Jewish a few times a year for follow up. Needham says she is "very grateful" to see Dr. Harbour.