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The operation that saved my sight
Jon Newcombe was stunned when his optician told him he needed a cataract operation. He was 38.
"I thought cataracts were something which happened to older people," said Jon, a sports journalist from Leeds.
The cataract in his right eye was discovered during a routine eye test.
"I've worn glasses and contacts since I was 15 due to being short-sighted. But when I went for my normal eye test, the optician thought he must have something wrong with his machine."
The test showed that Jon was his normal short-sighted –4 in one eye, but the other was –12.
"He tried another machine and it got the same result. He sent me to a specialist who said that I had a cataract and would need surgery."
Without an operation Jon would lose the sight in his right eye.
A cataract is a condition that occurs when the lens (the part of the eye that we see through) becomes clouded. A cataract can cloud a small part of the lens, or it may affect the whole lens.
Cataracts that cloud the whole lens seriously affect sight, and an operation is normally needed to prevent someone going blind. This is usually a quick and painless operation where the lens is taken out and replaced with an artificial one.
As the condition normally affects people in their 60s and 70s, the only operation available on the NHS was a replacement fixed lens, which would mean he would have to wear glasses for reading and limit his options for such things as sport.
"I went to St James's in Leeds and spoke to the consultant Oliver Backhouse, who outlined my options. I decided that I would go private and pay for a new type of lens which meant I wouldn't have to wear glasses."
Consultant ophthalmologist Mr Backhouse, who also works privately at Yorkshire Eye Hospital, told him that a revolutionary type of lens could be implanted in his eye which could replace his clouded cataract.
Jon, who is married with two young sons, was one of the first in the UK to have a new, state-of-the-art type of bifocal lens implant called the AcriLISA lens, at a cost of 3,100.
By the time he had surgery, the sight in his right eye had deteriorated to –18 and was starting to affect the way he lived his life.
"I really noticed it when I went to pour a glass of wine and missed it by an inch," he says.
Jon still doesn't know why he developed a cataract so early in life, and he has even started to develop a slight cataract in his left eye too.
He has tested negative for diabetes, which can be a cause of early cataracts, neither has he ever used steroids, another possible cause.
"I guess it is just one of those things and I am unlucky. They said the other reason could be a trauma to the eye; I did get a knock in the eye when I was playing rugby with my five-year-old Jack, but I don't think it was that.
"Within days of the operation, I was driving again and now my sight is better than ever, although I will probably have to have another operation on my left eye sometime in the future."
"It is unusual for someone of this age to have developed this condition," said Mr Backhouse. "This bifocal lens means he no longer needs glasses and they can also help people who haven't got a cataract."
Cataracts: the Facts
A cataract is a condition of the eye that makes it difficult to see.
A cataract can cloud a small part of the lens, or it may affect the whole lens.
Cataracts take a long time to form and many people may not realise they have a cataract. Opticians can easily spot cataracts, so it is important to have regular eye check-ups.
Cataracts cannot spread from one eye to the other, although they may develop in both eyes at the same time.
Most cataracts are caused by changes in the lens of the eye.
The chances of developing cataracts are increased if you smoke or go out in the sun a lot.
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Saturday 26 May 2012
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