Lucentis®
Lucentis, also known as ranibizumab injection, is a medication used in the treatment of the wet form of age-related macular degeneration, also known as AMD or ARMD. Age-related macular degeneration affects the macula, the part of the eye that provides sharp, central vision. Lucentis slows the development of vascular endothelial growth factor, or VEGF, a protein that causes abnormal blood vessels to grow and leak, damaging the macula. By slowing the development of VEGF, Lucentis aids in the prevention and reversal of vision loss experienced by those patients with AMD. Lucentis was designed specifically for use in the eye and is typically administered once a month as an injection into the eye.
Prior to approval by the Food and Drug Administration in 2006, Lucentis was studied extensively in 10 clinical trials with over 5,000 patients and has been used to treat over 100,000 patients with AMD.
The known side-effects of Lucentis include the possibility of a detached retina, an increase in intraocular pressure and inflammation and infection inside the eye.