While there are benefits of gene therapy, some patients will continue to need anti–vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD), said Charles C. Wykoff, MD, PhD, of Retina Consultants of Texas and the Blanton Eye Institute at Houston Methodist Hospital.
While there are benefits of gene therapy, some patients will continue to need anti–vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) therapy to treat wet age-related macular degeneration, said Charles C. Wykoff, MD, PhD, director of research at Retina Consultants of Texas; chair of research, Retina Consultants of America; and deputy chair of ophthalmology for the Blanton Eye Institute, Houston Methodist Hospital.
Transcript
What are the benefits in outcomes of using gene therapy over anti-VEGF injections in wet age-related macular degeneration?
We've had anti-VEGF injections now for over 15 years. And thank goodness we've had them. We've been able to really change the epidemiology of blindness around the world because of them. I don't see a gene therapy like this replacing the need for intravitreal injections. I mean, this gene therapy is only being utilized in these trials among patients who are previously treated. It's really important to demonstrate responsiveness before you give someone a potentially one-and-done therapy, like a gene therapy. You want to make sure that they're anti-VEGF responsive. And then certainly some patients will be good candidates for gene therapy, and others may not.
I think that a gene therapy like this is going to be very clinically useful and valuable for many patients. But some patients will continue to receive anti-VEGF bolus injection monotherapy. Even among the patients that can get gene therapy, we're seeing that a that a that a minority of patients, but a meaningful minority—27% to 40% of eyes—are receiving ongoing anti-VEGF injections after the gene therapy treatment. The hope is that many patients will not need ongoing therapy, repeated bolus injections, but some patients will. It's going to be sort of a hybrid model depending on each patient's responsiveness to the gene therapy when this is available commercially.
Diagnostic Oversights Limit Luspatercept Benefits in MDS
May 8th 2024Investigators of a retrospective study encourage colleagues to utilize molecular testing for patients with an established diagnosis of lower-risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), to be sure they don’t miss out on treatments, like luspatercept, for which they qualify.
Read More
Tackling Health Inequality: The Power of Education and Experience
April 30th 2024To help celebrate and recognize National Minority Health Month, we are bringing you a special month-long podcast series with our Strategic Alliance Partner, UPMC Health Plan. Welcome to our final episode of this limited series and our conversation with Janine Jelks-Seale, MSPPM, director of health equity at UPMC Health Plan.
Listen
Examining Low-Value Cancer Care Trends Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic
April 25th 2024On this episode of Managed Care Cast, we're talking with the authors of a study published in the April 2024 issue of The American Journal of Managed Care® about their findings on the rates of low-value cancer care services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Listen
Coexistence of HIV, Hemophilia May Lead to Increased Presence of Coronary Artery Stenosis
May 8th 2024In patients living with HIV, the cardiovascular risk factors that come with infection may lead to an increased prevalence of coronary artery stenosis, especially in those who also have hemophilia.
Read More