Posted October 21, 2010
DRUG based on vitamin A, the vitamin found in carrots, could prevent millions from going blind as they get older, doctors believe. The treatment was able to stop the most common cause of blindness in old age during trials.
Researchers behind the drug, known as fenretinide, found it halted the advance of age-related macular degeneration, for which there is no cure. They targeted the most prevalent form of the condition, known as ‘dry’ AMD, which is caused by the deterioration and death of cells in the macula, the part of the retinan used to see straight ahead.
The disease robs sufferers of their sight by creating a blackspot in the centre of a sufferers’ vision. It can make it impossible to carry out everyday tasks such as reading, driving and watching television.
While the less common ‘wet’ form can be treated, nothing can be done to help the bulk of patients. Almost 250 men and women with dry AMD took a fenretinide pill, originally designed to tackle arthritis, every day or a placebo, during the U.S. research.
In the highest dose, the drug halted visual deterioration after a year. This suggests that while it was unable to do anything to stop cells already damaged from dying, it protected healthy cells. Although the research is still preliminary, it offers promise of a treatment for a disease that affects millions.
Dr Jason Slakter, of New York University School of Medicine, said: ‘There are no effective treatments for dry AMD and the need for finding one is grave. Our study was designed to see if the drug was well tolerated by patents.’
‘Vitamin A drug could help millions to see’