Miracle drug will save sight of thousands
Published: March 19, 2007
A ‘miracle’ drug that can stop people from going blind is available on the NHS in Portsmouth for the first time.
Hundreds of Portsmouth patients with wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD) can now get sight-saving drug Lucentis at Queen Alexandra Hospital, Cosham.
It is the most common cause of blindness in the western world, but until last month, patients had to pay for monthly eye injections at £1,000 a dose.
Now medics will prescribe it on a case-by-case basis for three months, before reassessing the patient.
Portsmouth and Hampshire Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are among the first to offer this treatment to AMD sufferers, the majority of whom are over 75.
Lucentis is licensed, and tests have proved it is safe to use. Government watchdog the National Institute for Excellence (NICE) is preparing to recommend it for NHS use.
Currently just 25 of the country’s 152 PCTs prescribe it.
The move will help up to 1,000 Hampshire residents diagnosed with wet AMD every year – 100 in Portsmouth alone – retain their sight.
One of the first to receive treatment was William Clements, 79, from Hambrook Road, Gosport.
He said: ‘The thought that I could go blind was terrifying.
‘I was worried about the injection but I didn’t feel a thing. About a week after the treatment I noticed a difference in my right eye. Before, when I watched TV, all I could see was a blur. Now I can see colours and outlines of people. It’s brilliant.’
QA consultant opthalmologist Yit Fung Yang said: ‘We now have the ability to stop the decline in over two-thirds of patients and improve the eyesight of 30 to 40 per cent of people with newly-diagnosed wet AMD.’
A Hampshire PCT spokesman said: ‘We will continue to look at patients who may be suitable for this form of treatment.’
If you enjoyed this good news Subscribe to Good News Blog
Share this
To share this simply copy and paste one of the below URL's: