Proton beam irradiation of uveal melanomas: the first 30 years. The Weisenfeld Lecture.

Melanoma of the uveal tract is a life-threatening tumor that also presents a major threat to the function of the eye. Although the disease accounts for few cancer deaths in the United States each year, approximately one quarter of affected patients eventually die from metastasis. This number is greater in patients with certain characteristics that are associated with poor prognosis. The annual incidence of eye melanoma in the United States is 6 cases per 1 million persons (approximately 1500 new diagnoses per year).