Genentech, a member of the Roche Group (SIX: RO, ROG; OTCQX: RHHBY), today announced positive, top line results from the Phase II LADDER study evaluating the efficacy and safety of its investigational Port Delivery System with ranibizumab (PDS) in people with wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness for people age 60 and over, in the United States.1 The small, refillable eye implant, which is slightly longer than a grain of rice, is designed to allow people with wet AMD to go several months without needing to visit their ophthalmologist for treatment. The majority of PDS patients enrolled in the LADDER trial went six months or longer between implant of the device and the first, required refill. Vision outcomes in the high-dose PDS group were similar to monthly ranibizumab eye injections and were maintained throughout the study period. These data were presented by Carl C. Awh, M.D., of Tennessee Retina in Nashville, TN, at the 36th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS) in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
“If the PDS is successful, it could have a major impact on the way we treat people with wet AMD,” said Carl D. Regillo, M.D., FACS, Chief of Retina Service at Wills Eye Hospital in Philadelphia, PA and investigator for the LADDER study. “I believe that more consistent treatment could allow for better long-term vision outcomes in clinical practice.”
The current standard of care for wet AMD can be burdensome because it requires patients to visit their ophthalmologist as often as monthly for eye injections of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy to help maintain vision gains and/or prevent vision loss. This high treatment burden with anti-VEGF therapy can lead to under-treatment of wet AMD and, potentially, less than optimal vision outcomes.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.