2020 Spring Vision News
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vision News Spring 2020 Looking to the future The Lions Eye Institute creates a roadmap for the future. New treatment First in WA to offer new wet macular degeneration treatment. ‘Made in WA’ Drug to tackle the leading cause of childhood blindness. Lions Eye Institute | 2 Verdun Street Nedlands | (08) 9381 0777 | www.lei.org.au Like many other organisations, the Lions Eye Institute has had to navigate the very real risks and challenges of a global pandemic without a rule book. We have dealt – and continue to deal – with uncertainty, lockdowns, safety and hygiene issues and the many health, social, emotional and financial risks inherent in the spread of the virus. Above all, we have had to ensure we can continue to save the sight of our patients, no matter what. To say I’m proud of the way the Institute has performed during these turbulent months is an understatement. Due to the tireless efforts of our committed employees, we have managed to safely see and treat as many patients as possible, in Perth and throughout Western Australia through Lions Outback Vision. From the To you, our patients, thank you for your understanding and your ongoing faith in our ability to care for you. To our donors and supporters, thank Managing Director you for supporting us through these tough times. To our staff, volunteers, collaborators and everyone who is part of the Lions Eye Institute’s family, I offer my sincere gratitude for your dedication and hard work. Hello and welcome to our first Managing Director’s column. Because our newsletter goes to so many of Despite the COVID-19 challenges, our Board and our valued patients and supporters, I thought this management team remained active and continued to column would be a personal and direct way for me to plan for the Institute’s future advancements in both communicate with you about what’s happening at its clinical and research activities. We finalised our the Institute. new research strategy, as part of our broader strategic plan, and have refreshed our organisational values. What a year 2020 has been so far! For eye specialists, You can read more about this later in the newsletter. the term 20/20 – a measure of visual clarity – is part of our daily vernacular. Back in 2019, we naturally We have great plans for the future, including thought the year 2020 would be full of opportunities continuing our ground-breaking research, providing to highlight our work at the Institute under the unparalleled care and treatment, and expanding our 20/20-2020 banner. community outreach work. As always, our work is only made possible by you, and I thank you for your However, with a mind of its own, 2020 stumped us all continued support – it is truly valued. and caused us to redirect our energies to working out how to survive and thrive in a world none of us could I hope you and your loved ones stay safe and well for have foreseen. the remainder of 2020 and beyond. Thank you from Riley Bill Morgan MB BS, PhD, FRANZCO Riley sends a special thanks to everyone who donated to this Managing Director, Lions Eye Institute year’s EOFY appeal. These times have highlighted the importance of medical research and people like Follow us on social media you who help to make it happen. lionseyeinstitute lions-eye-institute LionsEyeInstAus Associate Professor Turner said, "Lions Outback North West Vision was extremely grateful to Wen Giving Foundation and Hawaiian Group which donated the Hub Update Kimberley Klub building and associated land as well as being strong advocates for the outreach work." Refurbishment funding has come from the Australian Government, Australian Capital Equity and The Fred Hollows Foundation. Optical technology companies It’s all systems go at 62 Frederick Street Carl Zeiss, Novartis and Topcon have donated surgical Broome, as the former Kimberley and diagnostic equipment. Klub backpackers hostel begins its transformation into the Lions Eye Exciting developments! This is our first Hub update and we’ll keep you posted on progress. Institute’s first remote eye health care centre – our North West Hub. Builders began work on the site in the first week of July, kicking off the refurbishment with an interior demolition of the building that will be the new Lions Outback Vision (LOV) clinic. Phase two of development planning – which includes administration, training, community areas and landscaping for the new clinic – is also well underway. The transformation of a backpackers hostel to an eye health centre is also a transformation of a dream to reality for LOV McCusker Director, Associate Professor Angus Turner. “This new base gives us a clinic facility where patients can be seen, using the latest diagnostic equipment,” he said. “Initially it will be a base for an Aboriginal health worker, optometrist and four resident doctors, and will include an education centre. It also makes monthly visits to more remote Kimberley and Pilbara locations far more efficient and cost effective from a Broome base." “Ultimately we hope to have a multi-disciplinary clinic, sharing facilities and fostering collaboration with visiting specialists – cardiology, ENT, dentistry, for example.” With some of the LOV team already located in Broome and the hub under development, the team has begun collaborating with community groups across the Kimberley, organising diabetic education and working with the Broome prison to offer assistance with eye health problems in diabetic inmates. The Lions Outback Vision team at the front of the Broome Hub Spring 2020 3 Yearly, comprehensive eye examinations are recommended as preventative care, especially for those 65 and older. Frederick, patient and Lions Eye Institute nurse Vicki The new treatment, administered by Associate Professor Chandra Balaratnasingam of the Lions Eye Institute, aims to allow patients with AMD to maintain First in WA good vision with less frequent injections. Beovu (Brolucizumab), developed by Novartis, is a to offer new TGA-approved Anti-VEGF agent for the treatment of wet AMD. Anti–VEGF treatment improves vision in a wet macular significant number of AMD patients by controlling the growth of new blood vessels under the macula. degeneration Beovu is currently being used under a limited release program with strict guidelines as the long terms effects treatment are being monitored in ongoing surveillance studies. Associate Professor Chandra Balaratnasingam said, “Beovu is a useful addition to the anti-VEGF therapies that are currently available to retina specialists. We EXCITING NEWS… A Lions Eye Institute have a number of effective drugs which block VEGF in the eye. However, the size and pharmacokinetics patient at our Murdoch Clinic is the first of each drug are different. Beovu is the smallest of person in Western Australia to receive the anti-VEGF therapies and there is some evidence a new TGA-approved treatment for wet to suggest it has a longer duration of action in select age-related macular degeneration (AMD). patients, resulting in a need for less injections.” More information about AMD VEGF stands for Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor – a protein produced by cells in your body. VEGF produces new blood vessels when your body needs them. Retina Then why Anti-VEGF? Sometimes Lens cells can over-produce VEGF, Macula causing abnormal blood vessels to grow in your eyes. These abnormal Cornea Optic cells damage your eye and can Nere lead to low vision or blindness. AMD is a progressive eye condition that occurs when a part of the retina called the macula is damaged. Activities which rely on the macula functioning well are reading, writing, looking at Some of our patients require intensive treatment detailed objects, and colour vision. with frequent visits to the Lions Eye Institute for anti-VEGF injections over many years, causing a significant burden for the patient, their carers and There are two types of AMD - dry and wet. the health system, and sometimes resulting in Most AMD starts as the dry type and under-treatment and sub-optimal visual outcomes. progresses to the wet type. Frequent patient visits for injections has also been a consideration for the Lions Eye Institute during Wet AMD is rarer and leads to sudden COVID-19 as we endeavour to lessen risk. and significant changes in vision, due to VEGF caused vessel damage. “Results from clinical trials indicate that Beovu may have wider application than solely for wet AMD and could be effective for treating vision loss due to Those most at risk of developing other conditions such as diabetes and retinal AMD are people with a family vein occlusion," Professor Balaratnasingam said. history, people over the age of 75 and smokers. The approval of Beovu was based on findings from the Phase III HAWK and HARRIER clinical trials. The Lions Eye Institute participated in the HAWK A healthy diet rich in antioxidants and clinical trials and is also currently participating in regular exercise is important in reducing the TALON, RAVEN and KESTREL studies which are the risk of macular degeneration and in assessing the use of the same product for different slowing the progression of the disease. eye conditions. We are constantly undertaking a range of ongoing clinical trials here at the Lions Eye Institute. If you notice sudden changes in your If you would like more information, email central vision, or your ability to see colours [email protected] and fine detail becomes impaired, see your optometrist, doctor or ophthalmologist to rule out AMD as the cause. Spring 2020 5 Focus on vision Of all our senses, eye sight is the one we value the most. For those of us who have good vision, our eyes open in the morning and the world instantly reappears to us – the light, the landscape, our homes, our families.