Date: March 3, 2016 Name: Minu Padhye
Title of Entry: Macular Degeneration and Stargardt Disease School: International Community School
Category: Essay
Theme: Advances in Medical Biotechnology
It was never quite clear in the beginning. Over the years, I grew accustomed to my uncle’s squints and fat lenses, dismissing his actions as mere results of slightly less-than-perfect vision. While I ache for that to be true, it tears me to accept that he is diagnosed with Stargardt disease, a condition for which there is no cure. Like him, more than 1.75 million Americans are impacted by some variety on the similar macular degeneration spectrum.8 However dim the scenario may seem, scientists remain undeterred, bettering the lives of these people through medical breakthroughs and procedures, hoping to eventually eradicate the disease entirely.
Stargardt disease is somewhat similar to macular degeneration, though not a replica. Degeneration is more common among the elderly, where it is called age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Stargardt bears stark contrast to AMD, forming in juveniles by a rarer genetic strain. With either sort of condition, a patient experiences varied levels of central vision loss, ranging from slight dimming to dark spaces where images should be perceived. The ordeal results from the gradual obstruction by certain substances of the retina’s epicenter, the macula, responsible for identifying detail. This portion of the eye ultimately deteriorates.
A specific obstructive protein known as drusen may infest and swell in the eye, causing severe distortion of images. This more common category for the disease is known as dry macular degeneration.Blood cells can also take a direct plunge to the macula. Wet degeneration, or choroidal neovascularization, may form a scar, irreversibly and permanently corrupting central perception. 1
Genentech’s Lucentis might be able to slow these devastating effects. A drug in Phase III clinical trials, Lucentis is administered via an intravitreal injection.8 Receiving a positive
vision. However, the drug is only effective against the wet strain of the disease, and further edits are imminent before release to the market. Through trial and error, these drugs developments manage to aid the visually impaired. According to ophthalmologist Dr. Cusic, exercise, a proper diet, and vitamins like vitamin A and lutein can slow the progression of the disease. 10
Efforts in the technology field also contribute to remedy this disease. Novartis and Google X have together developed smart telescopic contact lenses, allowing a user to zoom in and out in necessary instances. A simple wink toggles between a client’s central and peripheral perception: a capacity often restricted to degeneration patients. The feature allows them to utilize both parts of their limited vision to create a comprehensive whole. Addressing client issues, the lenses exceed expectations, but when worn excessively, lack of oxygen dries out the eye. Through refinement, Novartis achieved a prototype with air passageways, boosting comfort and potential wear-time. Presently, telescopic lenses can be implanted surgically, though restricted to certain patients. The contacts can be used by all those who need it. Dr. Cusic argues the contacts as an impossible feat. The telescopes required by macular degeneration patients have two parts, an objective and ocular lens. Contact lenses have only one layer altogether. Physics laws require distance between the two lenses, so the single plane of the contact is concerning.10 Despite unconventionality, scope for development remains and, however astonishing it may be, success can result through their clinical trials.
In cases like these and throughout our lifetimes, technology aids us in solving these medical mysteries, and will not cease to do so any time soon. Society progressed so far: from the earliest of injection needles to complex surgical machinery; from traditional glasses to elaborate, self-focusing contacts; from death by the common cold to a future of health and promise. This
same technology will one day rid the world of conditions like macular degeneration. People will truly be able to experience life to the fullest: ultimately, what is life without sight?
Reflective paragraph
Writing this piece truly opened my eyes to how influential biomedical research is to modern society, and how it will forever continue to shape the future. I have grown up watching my uncle faltering where others excel, simply due to the slightest dark spot in his central perception. We pay no second thought to our persistent reliance on vision in our mundane, daily routines. As he gets through the day, his face contorts in a constant squint, his heavy biopter sliding off the bridge of his nose as he reads fine print. Watching television with him, I read aloud subtitles, the channels that are playing, the time… and I have always wanted to spend time with him when he could see vividly for himself. The development of anti-degeneration drugs, treatment methods, and procedures might one day allow him to experience what we all take for granted. Through various fields of research, we build on our current expansive knowledge, forming connections and solutions we never saw possible before. I want to contribute to this medical progress in my future career. My uncle deserves to witness life in all its grandeur, as do all victims of macular degeneration. Suddenly, in light of all the efforts that have been made, these aspirations no longer seem impossible.
Citations
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<http://www.webmd.com/eye-health/macular-degeneration/age-related-macular-degeneration-overview>.
2. "What Is Macular Degeneration?" - AMDF. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2016. <https://www.macular.org/what-macular-degeneration>.
3. "ABCA4." Genetics Home Reference. N.p., 29 Feb. 2016. Web. 1 Mar. 2016. <http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/gene/ABCA4>.
4. "ELOV4." Genetics Home Reference. N.p., Nov. 2010. Web. 15 Feb. 2016. <http://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/gene/ELOVL4>.
5. "Dry Macular Degeneration." Dry Age-related Macular Degeneration. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2016. <https://www.macular.org/dry-amd>.
6. "Breakthrough for Macular Degeneration." Nightly News. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2016. <http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/13640644>.
7. "Prevalence of Related Macular Degeneration in the United States." Prevalence of
Age-Related Macular Degeneration in the United States. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2016.
<https://nei.nih.gov/eyedata/pbd4>.
8. "Lucentis® (ranibizumab Injection) Clinical Trials for Diabetic Macular Edema (DME) - Lucentis® (ranibizumab Injection)." Lucentis® (ranibizumab Injection) Clinical Trials for
Diabetic Macular Edema (DME) - Lucentis® (ranibizumab Injection). N.p., n.d. Web. 28
Feb. 2016. <http://www.lucentis.com/hcp/dme/clinical-trials-dme.html>.
9. "Contact Lens with Built-in Telescope to Fight Blindness." CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.
<http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/17/tech/contact-lens-telescope-blindness/index.html>.
10. Cusic, Ross. "Macular Degeneration and Stargardt Disease." Personal interview. 3 Mar. 2016.
