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Anecortave acetate well tolerated, surgeon says

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Long-term use of anecortave acetate can prevent severe vision loss and inhibit lesion growth in patients with wet age-related macular degeneration, according to Henry Hudson, MD, FACS.

Dr. Hudson presented 24-month phase 2/3 study data on Retaane (anecortave acetate, Alcon) during last week’s meeting of the American Society of Retina Specialists.

“A 15 mg treatment of Retaane has the potential to safely and effectively preserve sight in and deliver tangible benefits to wet AMD patients,” he said.

The study included 128 patients at 18 sites, of whom 76 completed 12 months of therapy and 55 completed 24 months. Of the treated patients, 73% had stable or improved vision from baseline to 24 months after treatment. None of the patients with predominantly classic choroidal neovascularization lesions had severe vision loss, defined as a loss of more than 6 lines of visual acuity.

Alcon has initiated a phase 3 trial at more than 50 sites in the United States, Europe, Australia and Canada, with about 500 patients enrolled. The phase 3 trial will be a head-to-head comparison of Retaane and Visudyne (verteporfin photodynamic therapy) for the treatment of classic wet AMD.