In response to the TGA's approval of a new drug to treat macular degeneration, UNSW researcher Dr Lisa Nivison-Smith provides context about the decision.
The below quotes can be attributed to Dr Nivison-Smith. Last week the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) made a historic decision, approving the first treatment in Australia for geographic atrophy, the main cause of blindness from macular degeneration. This gives hopes to thousands of Australians who until now have been told there is little they can do to save their vision and they face the possibility of losing their ability to read, drive and see the faces of their loved ones.
The drug, called pegcetacoplan (SYFOVRE), acts on components of the immune system that are thought to cause the light-detecting cells of the retina to die and lead to geographic atrophy and vision loss. However, whilst the treatment has been shown to slow down the progression of geographic atrophy, it has not been shown to halt the disease or reverse any existing damage. The treatment is also administered via repeated eye injections which can be challenging for some patients. As such, vision scientists such as myself are still looking for ways to slow or prevent the disease before geographic atrophy and vision loss has had a chance to occur.
Dr Lisa Nivison-Smith is a vision scientist at UNSW's School of Optometry who specialises in retinal eye disease, especially macular degeneration, with a view to improving early detection, diagnosis and management.
