Yo ho, yo ho...a pirate's life for me?

I found out Friday that I'm nearing corneal transplant stage regarding my long-time eye condition, keratoconus. If you were too lazy to click on the link, keratoconus is a thinning of the cornea that results in a cone-shaped bulge...and, of course, vision problems.

My doctor thinks I can go as long as my left contact lens stays in my eye (oh, keratoconus sufferers need to wear hard contact lenses...the most evil things in the universe). But if the steepening of my left cornea gets to the point where it won't let the contact lens stay in at all or the lens causes constant pain, I'm going to have to get the surgery.

Now, there are apparently a couple of things being tested as an alternative to corneal transplant surgery for those afflicted with keratoconus. However, even if these procedures are approved by the time the surgery becomes necessary for me, there is a risk with these that something could go wrong and result in blindness. But, as I see it, the same risk applies to a transplant...and these potential future surgical options leave out the additional risk of a rejection to a transplanted cornea.

So I'm hoping that one of these alternative methods is ready when/if I need the surgery.

Otherwise, I may just choose to put a patch over my left eye and become Johnny Depp...I mean, a pirate.