MONTREAL -- Gene therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) achieved stable vision and retinal anatomy for up to 5 years, with dramatic reductions in treatment burden, according to studies reported here.
Five-year follow-up of 15 patients treated with the phase III dose of VEGF-targeting ixoberogene soroparvovec (ixo-vec) showed a mean loss of 6.1 letters in best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) versus an expected loss of 12 to 17 letters on the basis of clinical trials of standard nAMD therapy. Baseline central subfield thickness (CST) declined by 131.6 µm. The patients required fewer than two supplemental injections annually, an 87% cumulative reduction over the baseline average of 10.
No patients developed hypotony, vasculitis, retinitis, choroiditis, or vascular occlusion, and one patient developed intraocular inflammation after complex cataract surgery, reported Szilard Kiss, MD, of Weill Cornell College of Medicine in New York City, at the American Society of Retina Specialists meeting.
"There was nearly a 90% reduction in the need for rescue injections [of aflibercept (Eylea)]," said Kiss. "Durable aqueous aflibercept levels were seen out to 5 years, as well as robust and durable clinical activity, with the low dose being well tolerated out to 5 years. Ixo-vec is currently undergoing evaluation in two phase III trials."
