Study shows safety, effectiveness for non-invasive wet AMD treatment

Newark, CA-Two-year results of a therapy for wet age-related macular degeneration show a favorable safety profile and reduced frequency of anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) injections in the eye.

Oraya Therapeutics, Inc.’s Stereotactic Radiotherapy uses low-energy, highly targeted X-rays for the treatment of wet AMD. Intended as a one-time procedure, it is non-invasive, rapid, comfortable for the patient, and easy for a trained operator to perform. The total procedure time is typically less than 20 minutes. The IRay radiotherapy system’s delivery approach, targeting algorithm, eye stabilization, and tracking methods are proprietary.

The INTREPID study’s broadly inclusive cohort of non-naïve wet AMD patients continued to receive the benefit of a 25% mean reduction in anti-VEGF injections over 2 years. Patients identified in the first year as ideal response candidates maintained a 45% mean reduction in anti-VEGF injections through the 2-year visit, with superior vision to the non-treated group. In addition, the overall safety profile was positive, with 1% of treated patients showing evidence of micro-vascular abnormalities due to radiation that could affect vision outcomes.

“A treatment that offers the prospect of fewer injections will be welcomed by clinicians and patients alike, said Timothy L. Jackson, PhD, FRCOphth, King’s College Hospital, London, lead investigator for the INTREPID trial. “Importantly, if we select the right patients, vision appears to be better than with anti-VEGF monotherapy. The safety at two years is also encouraging, in that most micro-vascular changes were located away from the fovea, and so did not have an impact on vision.”