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  • Nevus Diagnosis

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    Reviewed By Devin A Harrison, MD
    Published Sep. 01, 2017

    Your ophthalmologist can find a nevus during a routine eye exam to check the inside of your eye. A choroidal nevus usually looks gray, but it can also be brown, yellow or a combination of colors.

    Nevi that are orange, thicker than usual or are leaking fluid are considered suspicious.

    Your ophthalmologist may use imaging technology to examine the nevus more closely.

    Fluorescein angiography
    Fluorescein angiography

    Your ophthalmologist will take a picture of the nevus. That helps them see if there are any changes in its appearance the next time you visit.

    Most nevi are harmless, but some may not be. Sometimes a nevus can look like melanoma (a type of cancer). Your ophthalmologist may ask you to have the nevus re-checked in six months. If the nevus does not change over a year or two, it is not likely to be a melanoma. But nevi can change to a melanoma as you age, so you should have it checked by an ophthalmologist every year throughout life.