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Research on new treatment modalities for AMD may lead to better outcomes, personalized treatment
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MILAN — Progress has been made, but currently available treatments for age-related macular degeneration remain palliative.
"We must honestly admit that only one-third of the patients benefit from current treatments and that one out of six progresses to blindness," Gisele Soubrane, MD, said during the Kreissig Lecture at the Euretina congress.
AMD affects 40 million people worldwide, 7 million of whom are in the advanced stages of the disease. These numbers are expected to double by 2020.
Research on new treatments is ongoing.
"We have moved away from the goal of new vessel destruction. The real goal lies in the prevention of [choroidal neovascularization] development. Most of the research is now in fluid reduction and control of inflammation," Soubrane said.
Gisele Soubrane, MD, receives the Kreissig Award from Ingrid Kreissig, MD, and Gisbert Richard, MD.
Research on more effective treatments requires a better understanding of the pathophysiology of AMD.
"We need to improve our knowledge of the biological pathway of AMD. An earlier diagnosis will allow us to treat earlier, blocking the cellular and molecular disturbances that result in the development of CNV. We need biomarkers for the early stages of the disease, as we don't have them yet," she said.
Mapping the genotype has already proved useful in predicting the response to various treatment modalities. A refined understanding of associations of genotype and phenotype — clinical, biological and pathological — will be crucial for the development of effective diagnosis and therapy.
New treatments, alone or in association, may lead to an algorithm for personalized treatment, Soubrane said.
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Disclosure: Soubrane is a consultant for Pfizer, Novartis, Allergan and Théa.