RetinalGeniX IRB Approved to Conduct Study to Personalize Medical Evaluations for Patients Receiving Treatment for Wet Macular Degeneration

Study Intends To Identify Hematology Biomarkers That May Help Personalize Medical Evaluations For Patients Undergoing Treatments For Wet Macular Degeneration

PETALUMA, Calif., Oct. 30, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RetinalGeniX Technologies Inc. (OTCQB:RTGN) (“RetinalGeniX” or the “Company”), today announced the launch of an Institutional Review Board (“IRB”) for research on its DNA/GPS program.

The study aims to offer recommendations for enhancing the preselection process and management of ocular injections.

The proposed patient selection process has the potential to reduce the cost and improve the safety and efficacy of patient candidate selection for ocular injections. These factors represent significant challenges associated with wet macular degeneration-related vision loss.

“RetinalGeniX DNA/GPS has submitted a study with Pearl IRB to perform a clinical review of 390 patients. The company’s goal is to elucidate blood biomarkers to determine if a patient with active exudative AMD will respond better to intravitreal aflibercept versus intravitreal bevacizumab, two of the most used anti-VEGF agents available for treatment today. This research might lay the groundwork for ophthalmic personalized medicine that may be done with a simple blood test,” said Dr. Larry Perich, Director of the DNA/GPS program at RetinalGeniX. Dr. Perich will lead the collaborative study among leading universities to identify hematology biomarkers.

Jerry Katzman, MD, the CEO of RetinalGeniX, emphasized the importance of limiting ocular anti-VEGF injections into patients’ eyes for those who are good candidates for responsive treatment.

“Administering ineffective treatments is not only costly to the healthcare system, insurance carriers, and patients, but may also cause discomfort, stress, and unnecessary risk. Developing a simple blood test that can predict the likelihood of treatment success would greatly benefit everyone involved. Thanks to the advancements in pharmacogenetic mapping, studies such as Anti-VEGF are now possible, and a new era of "Precision Medicine" holds great promise for the future,” stated Dr. Katzman

In Ocular Surgery News on September 25, 2023, Dr. Richard Lindstrom stated, “We will approach 8 million intravitreal injections in 2023 and may hit 10 Million by 2025."

According to the BrightFocus Foundation and JAMA Ophthalmology, approximately 20 million people in the United States have AMD, and nearly 1.5 million Americans have the advanced form of the disease.