Your smartphone may detect eye cancer

Seeing a white glow Seeing a white glow in the eye of a child in a photograph can be really worrying. You may have seen it in a photo of your own little one, or you’ve spotted it in a friend’s photo and you’re worried about what to say. Here we’ve answered some of the most frequently asked questions around the white glow, what causes it and what to do if you see it: What causes white eye in photographs? Sometimes, when a photo of a child is taken using a flash, one (or both) of the eyes looks like it has a white glow or reflection in it. This is different to the usual “red eye” and is known as a “white reflex”. This may appear in lots of photos of the child or you may only see it in one photo. You may also be able to see it with the naked eye (ie not in photos) when they are in a darkened room. There are several causes of this, and the most common one is simply a light shining off the optic nerve. This happens when light entering the eye at a certain angle is reflected, causing a white eye effect and is totally harmless. However, the white reflex could be a sign of something more serious including, occasionally, retinoblastoma, a rare form of eye cancer that affects babies and young children mainly under the age of six. It’s very important to remember that retinoblastoma is rare and only affects around 50 children a year in the UK. There are other, much more likely causes of this white eye effect. However, we urge parents who have seen the white reflex in their child’s eyes to get it checked out as soon as possible just to rule out anything serious. Seeing a white glow in the eye of a child in a photograph can be really worrying. You may have seen it in a photo of your own little one, or you’ve spotted it in a friend’s photo and you’re worried about what to say. Here we’ve answered some of the most frequently asked questions around the white glow, what causes it and what to do if you see it: What causes white eye in photographs? Sometimes, when a photo of a child is taken using a flash, one (or both) of the eyes looks like it has a white glow or reflection in it. This is different to the usual “red eye” and is known as a “white reflex”. This may appear in lots of photos of the child or you may only see it in one photo. You may also be able to see it with the naked eye (ie not in photos) when they are in a darkened room. There are several causes of this, and the most common one is simply a light shining off the optic nerve. This happens when light entering the eye at a certain angle is reflected, causing a white eye effect and is totally harmless. However, the white reflex could be a sign of something more serious including, occasionally, retinoblastoma, a rare form of eye cancer that affects babies and young children mainly under the age of six.