Ellex will prioritise developing its Retinal Rejuvenation Therapy (Ellex 2RT) as an intervention for age related macular degeneration (AMD) in its early stages, before patients have progressed to the late stage disease, according to a statement by Tom Spurling, the company’s CEO.
Together with Prof. Robyn Guymer, Ellex recently announced the results of LEAD, a three-year randomised, multi-centre clinical trial, which investigated the efficacy of Ellex 2RT in intermediate AMD patients (iAMD). Post hoc analyses showed intervention with Ellex 2RT in patients who did not have coexistent reticular pseudodrusen (RPD) at the commencement of the trial (76 per cent of patients enrolled) resulted in a significant 77 per cent reduction in the rate of progression from iAMD to late AMD versus placebo (p=0.002).
2RT represents the first time a laser intervention has successfully addressed AMD disease progression in over 20 years of AMD laser research.
“From the LEAD trial, we see that using Ellex 2RT as an intervention during early AMD can delay the onset of late stage AMD. This isn’t a cure but we hope that this will change the lives of millions of AMD patients worldwide,” said Mr. Spurling.
“Our goal is to start a serious discussion about the importance of treating this disease at an earlier stage in order to reduce its significant, negative impact on patient quality of life, and to reduce the burden it places on the global healthcare sector,” he said.
