Radioactive surgery aims for selective radiation delivery to CNV membranes

Article

Encouraging results have been achieved in a pilot clinical trial of selective epiretinal brachytherapy for exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD), reported Eugene de Juan, Jr., MD, at the World Ophthalmology Congress.

Encouraging results have been achieved in a pilot clinical trial of selective epiretinal brachytherapy for exudative age-related macular degeneration (AMD), reported Eugene de Juan, Jr., MD, at the World Ophthalmology Congress.

By delivering beta radiation directly over the choroidal neovascular lesion in a controlled way with an intraocular probe, selective epiretinal brachytherapy is designed to provide efficient "radioactive surgery" with the benefits of high-dose external beam radiation therapy while avoiding or minimizing the latter's adverse effects on vision loss.

The pilot study, which is still ongoing, is being conducted at sites in Brazil, Mexico, and Turkey, and was designed to collect preliminary safety and feasibility data, refine the surgical technique, and investigate dosing.

From a surgical perspective, the procedure was associated with favorable safety. There were no retinal detachments, no infections, no retinal pigment epithelium rips, and only occasional postoperative hemorrhages that were mild and not visually important. Efficacy was also promising in the pilot trial. No patients experienced moderate or severe vision loss, while the majority of patients showed vision gains. At 3 months, vision was improved in 54% of 24 evaluated patients, with a mean gain of 7.3 letters. There were 13 patients who reached the 6-month visit, and among them, 62% benefited with improved vision. The mean gain in that analysis was 6.5 letters.

"We have now received IDE approval from the FDA and a multicenter trial is planned to begin in 2006. Hopefully, further studies will find that epiretinal brachytherapy might be a good adjunctive or sole therapy for exudative AMD," said Dr. DeJuan of the University of Southern California in the United States.

Newsletter

Join ophthalmologists across Europe—sign up for exclusive updates and innovations in surgical techniques and clinical care.

Recent Videos
Alfredo Sadun, MD, PhD, chief of Ophthalmology at the Doheny Eye Institute, University of California Los Angeles, shared exciting new research with the Eye Care Network during the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting on the subject of Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON).
At this year's Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO) meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, Nitish Mehta, MD, shared highlights from his research documenting real-world results of aflibercept 8 mg for patients with diabetic macular oedema.
ARVO 2025: Anat Loewenstein, MD, shares data from herself and her colleagues on meeting needs of patients with diabetic retinopathy
At the American Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons annual meeting, Sheng Lim, MD, FRCOphth discusses the benefit of endoscopic cyclophotocoagulation for patients with primary open angle glaucoma and cataracts in the CONCEPT study
A photo of Seville, Spain, with the Congress on Controversies in Ophthalmology logo superimposed on it. Image credit: ©francovolpato – stock.adobe.com; logo courtesy COPHy
Anat Loewenstein, MD, Professor and Director, Department of Ophthalmology, Tel Aviv Medical Center, discusses the Congress on Controversies in Ophthalmology (COPHy)
(Image credit: Ophthalmology Times Europe) AGS 2025: Clemens Strohmaier, PhD, on improving aqueous humour outflow following excimer laser trabeculostomy
3 experts are featured in this series.
Anat Loewenstein, MD, speaks about the 22nd Annual Angiogenesis, Exudation, and Degeneration Meeting in February 2025 and shares her global forecast for AI-driven home OCT
3 experts are featured in this series.
© 2025 MJH Life Sciences

All rights reserved.