Closing the Access Gap: Why Eligible Patients Are Going Untreated and What to Do About It

In this segment, our panel addresses one of the most important and underappreciated problems in uveal melanoma care: the gap between patients who are eligible for effective therapy and patients who actually receive it. You will hear why provider unawareness, lack of referral infrastructure, and institutional capacity constraints are leading to patients going untreated, and what each of us can do to close that gap. The panel describes the diamond-shaped patient journey in this disease, from the small pool of ocular oncologists who see patients at diagnosis through the dispersal to community care and the importance of funneling patients back to expert centers when systemic therapy is needed. The message is clear: uveal melanoma is no longer a disease without hope, and the single most impactful thing a community oncologist can do is refer early.