Finally, one unlikely drug seems successful in helping patients with wet age-related macular degeneration get their sight back. The cancer drug known as Avastin has been used thus far with more than 2,000 patients throughout the world, and the results have been promising.
In a small study organized by Dr. Philip Rosenfeld of Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami, Florida, patients were seeing vision improve within just one week of receiving the injection of Avastin, which causes fluid in the retina to flatten out, according to doctors.
"Never before were we able to tell our patients that you could actually see better after therapy," said Dr. Rosenfeld. "I've had patients go from being legally blind, 20/200 or worse, to being able to see 20/20 after receiving the drug."
While the drug has had miraculous results for many, Rosenfeld and his colleagues note that not everyone is a candidate for Avastin treatment for their age-related macular degeneration. First of all, restoration to 20/20 vision isn’t the norm and Avastin is only for patients in the early stages of the disease. For best results, the drug should be administered within 6 to 12 months of the onset of the disease.
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