Macular Degeneration: Stem Cells Restore Sight in Small Study Peter Russell March 21, 2018
Doctors in the UK say they have taken an important step towards treating a common form of blindness – wet age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Results of a study published in the journal Nature Biotechnology describe how stem cell therapy can restore sight. Douglas Waters from Croydon, London, was one of 2 people who received the treatment at Moorfields Eye Hospital. Mr Waters, who is 86, developed severe wet AMD in July 2015 and received the treatment 3 months later in his right eye. He says: "In the months before the operation my sight was really poor and I couldn’t see anything out of my right eye. I was struggling to see things clearly, even when up-close. "After the surgery, my eyesight improved to the point where I can now read the newspaper and help my wife out with the gardening." The team behind the trials caution that further research is needed before this method could be considered for routine clinical approval.
