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news.Genetech’s FDA-approved cancer drug Avastin (bevacizumab) could help prevent blindness in a group of premature babies born before their eyes developed completely (retinopathy of prematurity), according to a new study.
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The study results, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, indicate that a single injection of Avastin into premature babies’ eyes prevented blindness more effectively than laser surgery, the conventional method used by doctors, reuters.com reported.
From among 75 infants who received Avastin and whose retinopathy was in the zone of the retina closest to the optic nerve, 6% had a recurrence of the condition compared with 42% treated with laser surgery.
Reuters.com quoted University of Buffalo researcher James Reynolds as saying that since such cases have traditionally been hardest to treat, Avastin injections are "a true breakthrough if the timing of the injection is maintained.