Secondary optic nerve tumors.

Secondary tumors of the optic nerve are more common than primary optic nerve tumors. The involvement of the optic nerve may arise from direct invasion from intraocular malignancies, from hematopoietic malignancy, from meningeal carcinomatosis, or from distant primary tumors. Orbital tumors rarely invade the optic nerve, and brain tumors involve it only in their late stages.