A teenager has thanked his local branch of Specsavers after an eye test led to the diagnosis of a potentially life-threatening brain tumour.
Anthony Jones, 18, from Caerphilly, was referred for an emergency doctor’s appointment after a routine eye test discovered a swollen nerve placing pressure on the back of his eye.
The diagnosis came after Anthony, a patisserie student at Coleg y Cymoedd in Nantgarw, visited Specsavers in Caerphilly town after suffering blurred and double-vision in his left eye, sickness and fatigue.
A later CT scan at hospital confirmed Anthony had a brain tumour, and three days later he underwent an eight-hour operation to have it removed.
Anthony said: “I was absolutely shell-shocked when I found out that I had a brain tumour, it really wasn’t something I was expecting to hear.
“I hadn’t been feeling quite myself for some time and my doctor had put this down to flu, so I can’t put into words how I felt when I was told what was actually wrong.”
He added: “If the health of my eyes hadn’t deteriorated so rapidly, I don’t know when it would have been found.”
Anthony had developed a condition called papilledema as a result of the tumour, where the optic nerve swells and causes disruption to a person’s vision. Following the successful surgery, his eyesight has returned to normal.
Ophthalmic optician Robert Evans, who examined the teenager, said: “For a teenager, Anthony has been through a horrific ordeal and we are so pleased that he has recovered as well as he has.
“As this case shows, anybody, of any age, can develop problems with their eye health, which is why having regular sight tests and visiting your optician if you experience pain, discomfort or abnormalities with your vision is so important.”
Anthony added: “I can’t thank Specsavers enough for their part to play in all of this. Robert acted quickly after my eye test, knowing that I needed further investigations to get to the bottom of what was wrong.”
A regular eye test is a valuable part of preventative medicine, several dangerous conditions can be detected and then treated.
It is not commonly known that an optometrist at your regular optician will also examine you quickly in the event of an eye injury. I had droplets an industrial cleaning chemical get in my eye on a Sunday afternoon. Monday morning I received a thorough eye examination at the opticians and was prescribed drops to counter the eye irritation. Excellent service and was seen far quicker than the doctor’s surgery.