Nataša Jovic has led marketing strategies for retina products since the launch of Visudyne. Approved by the FDA in 2002, Visudyne was the first commercially available therapy to treat wet AMD.   Today, Jovic applies her scientific background and retina experience to lead marketing and commercial operations for RetinAI, a software company that supports R&D initiatives. As a retina specialist, OIS podcast host Firas Rahhal, MD, wanted to know: what’s the deal with AI? How can it help me in my practice? Jovic provides insight. At present, the FDA has approved over 500 AI-enabled medical ..read more

Cedric Francois, MD, PhD, is the cofounder, CEO, and president of Apellis, the company behind Syfovre, the first FDA-approved treatment for geographic atrophy. Like many, his path to the top of a successful publicly traded pharmaceutical company did not come fast or easy. He learned the hard way not to rely on “soft commitments” when funding a new venture. He also learned that good instincts and a better bottle of wine can go a long way toward persuading angel investors to open their checkbooks. In this conversation with Firas Rahal, MD, Dr. Francois details the long and winding path that led ..read more

Jodbhir (Jod) Mehta, PhD, is the Head of the Tissue Engineering and Stem Cell Group at the  Singapore Eye Research Institute and Head of the Corneal Service and Senior Consultant in  the Refractive Service of the Singapore National Eye Center (SNEC). Dr. Mehta, a corneal and refractive surgery expert, has spent most of his career in Singapore, a small, thriving nation with one of the most successful healthcare systems in the world. But he trained in London and Birmingham, England. Dr. Mehta could have stayed in England and done quite well. Instead, he chose to continue his career in ..read more

When Barry Linder, MD, was an ophthalmologist with Kaiser Permanente, he saw a familiar pattern. Patients with dry eye disease usually had Meibomian gland dysfunction (MGD). They were advised to place a wet warm washcloth over the eyelids twice a day. They’d inevitably abandon the protocol after a few days. Thinking there had to be a better way, he developed the EyeGenie, a simple but effective eye mask that delivers continuous heat for up to 15 minutes. For patients with moderate to severe dry eye, he developed the Eye Lipid Mobilizer (ELM), a device so effective that podcast host Paul Karpec ..read more

If ophthalmology clinical trials were burgers, mitomycin would be the mustard at the table of every U.S. restaurant with a burger on the menu.* Using this analogy, Mitsol, developed and manufactured by Mobius Therapeutics, is the only FDA-approved mitomycin-c “mustard” formulation with an ophthalmic indication. In reality, the mitomycin story in ophthalmology is more complicated than that, says Ed Timm, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Mobius Therapeutics. Mitomycin-c is used by ophthalmologists to prevent scarring during surgery. Before the FDA approved Mitosol, surgeons would have to obtain a f ..read more

In pharma, it takes many failures to achieve one breakthrough. Dompé, a family-owned global biopharmaceutical company, focuses on long-term success, knowing those wins impact thousands or even millions of patients. Gianluca Rossetti, Strategic Planning & Corporate Business Development Director at Dompé, was drawn by the company’s ambition, passion, and commitment to innovation and science. Today, he uses his management consulting background to guide the company’s business strategy, lead strategic projects, and provide direction as the company expands its ophthalmology portfolio. With podca ..read more

As Vice President and General Manager of U.S. Surgical for Bausch + Lomb, Anthony Wallace is involved in virtually all things surgical. His day-to-day includes strategy, portfolio planning, R&D alignment, acquisitions, pricing and contracting, sales and marketing, and supply chain. On top of all that, he’s one of the key executives leading Bausch + Lomb’s five-year charge: double the number of patients reached from 2 million to 4 million. During a candid discussion with podcast host and retina surgeon Firas Rahhal, MD, Wallace discusses how current healthcare policy will affect surgical de ..read more

Today’s podcast shines the spotlight on the front of the eye, focusing new treatments and approaches to dry eye disease, blepharitis, and Sjogren's Syndrome, to name a few. Kelly Nichols, OD, PhD, dean of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Optometry, guides a panel of four clinical and industry experts through a robust conversation on ocular surface disease. They start by sharing their optimism around new treatments and awareness initiatives. Jeffrey Nau, PhD, president of the newly formed Viatris Eye Care Division, said progress is inching along now, but “it’s only a matter of ..read more

Myopia has escalated to epidemic proportions with a global prevalence twice that of obesity. A study published in JAMA Ophthalmology in 2021 found the prevalence of myopia in six-year-old children in China jumped from 5.7% between 2015 and 2019 to 21.5% in 2020.   Given myopia affects about 40% of Americans and up to 90% of the East and Southeast Asians, it’s time to pick up the pace on education, treatment, and management.   At OIS XII in San Diego, a panel of experts discussed how the eye care community can make a difference in myopia within the pediatric population.   Moderat ..read more

Robert Avery, MD, CEO of California Retina Consultants, balances roles as physician and researcher with a lucrative additional career: advising life sciences companies and ophthalmology focused venture capital funds.   With colleague and podcast host Firas Rahhal, MD, Dr. Avery talks about how he got into the business side of medicine. He also looks back over 30 years of retina, which includes pioneering the use of anti-VEGF agents for retinal disease. Looking forward, Dr. Avery shares his views on what’s on the horizon for drug delivery platforms. And for the drug and device developers i ..read more