Neovascular age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD) cannot be cured, but drug treatment may slow vision loss and even improve it in some cases. These drugs work by blocking abnormal blood vessel growth under the retina that leaks blood into it and by slowing their leaking.

Certain forms of wet AMD may also be treated using laser surgery or photodynamic therapy – an outpatient procedure using light to slow or stop blood vessel leakage – as well as antioxidant vitamins and zinc supplements, which may lessen vision loss severity.

Visudyne

Recent advances have provided hope to many patients suffering from age-related macular degeneration. One such breakthrough, faricimab-svoa (Visudyne), may improve vision with fewer injections and treatments than previous therapies by targeting disease pathways that drive diabetic macular edema and wet age-related macular degeneration; further, studies have demonstrated its success at improving visual acuity over two years as well as decreasing progression to more severe forms such as wet AMD.

Visudyne works by combining verteporfin with photodynamic therapy, administering it subcutaneously through injection to travel directly into the eye where it’s activated by low intensity laser beam. Only blood vessels containing fluid or scar tissue are targeted, sparing healthy tissue. Visudyne was co-developed by CIBA Vision of Novartis and QLT Phototherapeutics and approved by FDA in September 2013.

Recently, the FDA granted approval of a refillable implant that delivers anti-VEGF drug ranibizumab (Susvimo). This device can be surgically placed during one procedure and refilled every six months; it represents an innovative new solution for wet macular degeneration treatment compared with expensive and time consuming anti-VEGF injections currently administered for treating this condition.

Macular degeneration is an incurable progressive eye condition that primarily impacts the macula, an area of retina with dense concentrations of photoreceptor cells responsible for central vision. Although there is no cure for macular degeneration, regular visits to an ophthalmologist and diet rich in dark green vegetables, fish, and omega-3 fatty acids may help manage and prevent further vision impairment. Smoking cessation, weight maintenance and controlling blood pressure and cholesterol may all play a part in managing the disease’s progress as well.

Macular degeneration most frequently takes the form of dry macular degeneration, which results in progressive loss of central vision. Wet macular degeneration is much more dangerous, often manifested as abnormal leaky blood vessels forming under the retina that leak and cause irreparable damage to macula cells if untreated. Drugs like Avastin, Lucentis and Eylea work by blocking protein VEGF which stimulates new blood vessel formation and scar tissue formation under retina; this treatment has saved thousands from going blindness!

Avastin

Avastin (bevacizumab) is an anti-angiogenic agent injected directly into the eye that works by inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor – an eye protein responsible for stimulating abnormal blood vessel growth that may lead to vision loss. Avastin may be used for wet age-related macular degeneration and other eye conditions, and is being studied as potential cancer and disease treatments.

Genentech of San Francisco produces two medications that can stop and even reverse vision loss caused by wet macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, including Lucentis which is FDA-approved, as well as Avastin which has not been FDA-approved but used “off-label”. Avastin is much less costly; one injection with Avastin typically costs $50 while Lucentis costs more than $2,000 according to Genentech who manufactures both drugs.

Researchers have recently discovered that Avastin stands out as being more effective at reaching small blood vessels inside the retina to block new vessel growth than its rival, Neupogen. At first it was thought the large Avastin molecules may be too big to enter these delicate channels of the eye, but doctors have since been finding this is not necessarily true.

The National Eye Institute is currently conducting a clinical trial that will compare the efficacy of Avastin and Lucentis for treating neovascular AMD; however, results of this trial are expected next year. Ophthalmologists who wish to use Avastin must obtain it from Genentech and receive monthly intravitreal injections as part of this therapy plan.

This procedure is relatively quick and painless. Before receiving the injection, eye drops will be administered to numb your eye before using a small needle to inject medication into the white portion of your eyeball known as the sclera. Your doctor may want you to keep your eye open afterwards so they can assess its results and ensure there are no serious side effects from this injection.

Lucentis

Lucentis is a powerful medication designed to halt or reverse vision loss from age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy, according to recent research. Alongside its chemically similar cousin Avastin, both made by San Francisco-based Genentech have proven successful at treating both forms of this eye disease. Lucentis can even stop or even reverse macular degeneration progression in certain patients.

This medication works by inhibiting the interaction between vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) and its receptors, leading to new blood vessel formation and leakage. It has been found to treat conditions like wet macular degeneration, macular edema caused by retinal vein occlusion or diabetic retinopathy, myopic choroidal neovascularization as well as proliferative diabetic retinopathy – which could ultimately lead to blindness – by improving vision in such patients.

Treatment involves injection of eye drops into your eye. Your eye will first be cleansed to avoid infection and then numbed for injection; upon injection you may feel slight pressure, but this should not be painful; injection itself takes only seconds and most patients tolerate it well; following that injection your doctor will perform an eye exam and provide antibiotic eye drops as preventative measure against future infection.

Recent findings published in the New England Journal of Medicine indicate that Avastin, an FDA-approved cancer drug approved to treat some forms, is as effective as FDA-approved Lucentis in treating wet macular degeneration. These results come from year one of a two-year clinical trial called CATT; researchers remain uncertain why it worked so effectively but believe that treating its root cause rather than just covering up symptoms may explain this success.

Coherus Biosciences and Samsung Bioepis’ biosimilar to Lucentis was recently approved by the FDA as interchangeable; its brand name will be Cimerli and will become commercially available sometime between 2022-2024, at a price which should significantly undercut that of Lucentis.

Eylea

The FDA recently granted approval of an exciting new treatment for wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD), that may significantly improve vision in some patients. It consists of an intraocular injection containing a humanized single-chain fragment of ranibizumab (Avastin). This drug works by blocking the protein vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), which promotes blood vessel formation beneath retina. This injection joins other proven solutions which have shown to slow or prevent progression of wet macular degeneration and preserve vision preservation.

This drug marks a breakthrough in macular degeneration treatment by inhibiting new blood vessel formation. It can work alongside existing treatments like laser photocoagulation and photodynamic therapy with verteporfin, as well as be combined with anti-VEGF agents such as other anti-VEGF treatments to achieve maximum effectiveness. Anticipated release dates in United States, Europe and Canada this year:

According to a new study, an experimental drug using similar technology as Avastin and Lucentis may be more beneficial for people suffering from wet macular degeneration than its predecessors. According to research published this week by Nature Biotechnology journal, this new medication appears more successful at improving vision while simultaneously preventing its loss than existing alternatives.

Wet macular degeneration, an advanced form of macular degeneration, occurs when abnormal blood vessels form beneath the retina. This leads to leakage of fluids that damage photoreceptor cells in the eye and damage them further. Though rare, wet macular degeneration can quickly progress to legal blindness affecting only a minority of cases requiring injection of anti-VEGF medicines like Avastin, Lucentis or Eylea to treat sight conditions quickly and effectively.

The National Institutes of Health has recommended taking dietary supplements that can lower your risk of wet macular degeneration. These include lutein, zeaxanthin and omega 3 fatty acids found in dark green leafy vegetables or fish oil – they may even slow the rate of vision decline and allow individuals to continue working and living an active lifestyle.