26
Feb 2019
Gene therapy successfully stops most common cause of blindness
A patient in the UK has become the first in the world to undertake gene therapy in an attempt to stop the most common form of blindness in the western world, targeting the underlying genetic cause of age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Around 600,000 people in the UK are currently affected by the condition, where retinal cells die and are not replaced, and the risk of being affected by the condition increases with age.
In the new treatment, an injection is applied to the back of the eye, delivering a harmless virus which contains a synthetic gene. The virus then infects the retinal cells and releases the gene, enabling the eye to produce a protein designed to stop cells from dying and keep the macula healthy.
Current trials at Oxford Eye Hospital, are taking place to check the safety of the procedure in patients who have already lost some vision. If the trials prove successful, it is intended for the treatment to be offered to patients before having lost any sight, so that the condition can be halted in its tracks.
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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.
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