TORONTO - Eight-year-old Logan Dorna has become a vibrant supporter of the Blue Jays during their playoff run, proudly showcasing their logo on his prosthetic eye. Logan lost his left eye to retinoblastoma, a form of eye cancer, at just six months old. The procedure took place at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, where he has received continuous care and support.

Matthew Milne, an ocularist affiliated with the hospital's eye cancer team, crafted Logan's first artificial eye when he was a baby. As Logan grows, Milne replaces it approximately every two years to accommodate his development. Recently, during a visit for his next prosthetic eye, Logan expressed a desire for something special that reflected his passion for baseball.

“I wanted to get the special eye because I like playing baseball and I like watching it too,” Logan said in a video interview with his parents from their home in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Milne accommodated his request by creating a prosthetic eye with a gold iris and the stitched seams of a baseball. Although the Blue Jays logo is painted on top of the eye, it remains hidden when the eye is in the socket. However, Logan takes joy in being able to reveal it when he opts to switch to his second “everyday” prosthetic eye, which features a brown iris to match his seeing eye. This everyday eye also has a special decoration—a character from the “Zelda” video game series—reflecting his unique interests.

Milne encourages the children he works with to personalize their prosthetic eyes. "When you’re dealing with a very kind of adult issue like retinoblastoma, I always want to give kids the opportunity to customize something for themselves and make it fun," he remarked.

Logan's mother, Taline Dorna, notes that her son wears his Blue Jays eye during every game, believing it brings extra luck to the team. This themed prosthetic eye symbolizes not just his love for the sport but also marks a significant milestone in his life. “Having just monocular vision, depth perception is really off. So whenever he hit that ball... it really gave him that boost of confidence,” Dorna explained, celebrating Logan's first experiences playing baseball.

During games, Logan’s playing positions vary; he enjoys being in right field, and sometimes plays in the middle or left field. Taline and Logan's father, Serge, express their hope that their son's progressive attitude towards his artificial eye will inspire other children with differences to embrace their uniqueness without shame. “That’s what we’ve always wanted for him… no social stigma attached to having a prosthetic eye because it is such a visible difference,” Taline stated. The family aims for Logan to always feel proud and confident in his identity.

Milne elaborated on the mechanics of Logan’s prosthetic eye, explaining that it is attached to ocular muscles, allowing it to move in sync with his seeing eye, despite the absence of vision. Retinoblastoma, while rare—only 15 cases were reported in children under 14 in 2019—remains the most common type of eye cancer in children and is often diagnosed before the age of two, as per the Canadian Cancer Society. The removal of Logan’s cancerous eye was crucial in preventing the tumor from metastasizing, and fortunately, he did not require additional treatments like chemotherapy or radiation afterward.

Logan currently attends annual checkups at SickKids’ eye clinic and visits Milne every few months for maintenance of his prosthetic eye. His story not only highlights his bravery and resilience but also emphasizes the importance of acceptance and celebration of differences among children.