The WashU Medicine John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences has received a notice of award for a new clinical trial focused on advancing treatment options for patients with geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration (AMD). The study, titled “Efficacy of Dapagliflozin in Geographic Atrophy Secondary to Age-Related Macular Degeneration: A Prospective, Interventional Randomized Double-blind Placebo-controlled Study,” aims to evaluate whether an existing FDA-approved medication may help slow disease progression in this advanced form of dry AMD.
This investigator-initiated trial is supported by the BJC Foundation. The study is being coordinated by Wilson X. Wang, MD, PGY-1 resident, in collaboration with retina faculty, clinical coordinators and researchers within the department, under the direction of Rajendra S. Apte, MD, PhD. The trial reflects the department’s continued commitment to translating laboratory discoveries into carefully designed clinical studies that may ultimately benefit patients facing vision loss.
We are grateful to the BJC Foundation, Jeffrey T. Fort, and Alvin Siteman for supporting our research on developing uncovering disease mechanisms and developing new therapies for age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy.
Rajendra S. Apte, MD, PhD
By rigorously evaluating new treatment approaches through randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials, WashU Medicine continues to advance research efforts aimed at improving outcomes for patients with AMD and other retinal diseases.
If you would like more information about this GA clinical trial, please visit clinicaltriasls.gov .
About WashU Medicine
WashU Medicine is a global leader in academic medicine, including biomedical research, patient care and educational programs with 2,900 faculty. Its National Institutes of Health (NIH) research funding portfolio is the second largest among U.S. medical schools and has grown 56% in the last seven years. Together with institutional investment, WashU Medicine commits well over $1 billion annually to basic and clinical research innovation and training. Its faculty practice is consistently within the top five in the country, with more than 1,900 faculty physicians practicing at 130 locations and who are also the medical staffs of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s hospitals of BJC HealthCare. WashU Medicine has a storied history in MD/PhD training, recently dedicated $100 million to scholarships and curriculum renewal for its medical students, and is home to top-notch training programs in every medical subspecialty as well as physical therapy, occupational therapy, and audiology and communications sciences.