At the American Academy of Ophthalmology meeting in Orlando, Arshad M. Khanani, MD, MA, FASRS (Sierra Eye Associates), highlighted significant advancements in the therapeutic pipeline for neovascular AMD. His presentation focused on two primary classes of emerging treatments: Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors (TKIs) and gene therapies.
1. Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors (TKIs)
Dr. Khanani detailed current clinical trials involving sustained-delivery TKI formulations designed to extend treatment intervals:
– OTX-TKI (axitinib implant): Developed by Ocular Therapeutix, this treatment is currently being evaluated in the SOL-1 and SOL-R clinical trials.
– Vorolanib: Developed by EyePoint Pharmaceuticals, this formulation is designed for a dosing schedule of once every six months. It is currently being studied in the LUCIA and LUGANO trials.
2. Gene Therapy Programs
The presentation also covered three major gene therapy candidates aimed at providing long-term solutions for wet AMD, distinguished by their delivery methods:
– Subretinal Delivery:
– ABBV-RGX-314: A collaboration between AbbVie and Regenxbio.
– Intravitreal Delivery:
– 4D-150: Developed by 4D Molecular Therapeutics.
– ADVM-022: Developed by Adverum Biotechnologies.
Expert Perspective
Khanani expressed strong optimism about the near future of AMD treatment, stating:
“I am very excited about the next year or two where we are going to see numerous readouts, and I’mhopefully, many of the programs can achieve successful primary endpoints so we can have them available for our patients so we can optimize long-term vision for our patients with neovascular AMD.”
This underscores his belief that upcoming trial results could pave the way for new therapeutic options that improve long-term visual outcomes for patients.
Disclosures: Dr. Khanani reported no relevant financial disclosures regarding this presentation.
