OPT - Opthea Welcomes International Retina Thought Leaders to Join Its Medical Advisory Board | Benzinga
MELBOURNE, Australia and PRINCETON, N.J., July 17, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Opthea Limited (NASDAQ:OPT, "Opthea", the "Company")), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies to treat highly prevalent and progressive retinal diseases, including wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD), today announces the formation of its Medical Advisory Board ("MAB") composed of 10 retina thought leaders from countries around the world including the US, Argentina, Australia, China, France, Germany, and Israel.
Chaired by Arshad M. Khanani, MD, MA, FASRS, Chief Medical Advisor of Opthea, the MAB's role is to advise the Company on opportunities to address the unmet medical needs of patients with retinal diseases and to inform the Company's development efforts, such as the sozinibercept clinical program in wet AMD.
"We appreciate the support from world-renowned experts in retinal diseases to advise us on the short- and long-term strategic direction of our pipeline and development efforts," said Frederic Guerard, PharmD, Chief Executive Officer of Opthea. "Our vision is to help people with retinal diseases see better by advancing bold therapeutic innovations and inspiring transformation within the global retinal community. Opthea's new Medical Advisory Board will be a valuable resource for our team to learn from the scientific insights and clinical practice of the appointed retinal experts."
The formation of the MAB comes at a crucial stage for the Company as it prepares for Phase 3 topline data read-out of its two pivotal trials of sozinibercept in wet AMD (COAST in early Q2 calendar year 2025 and ShORE in mid-calendar year 2025) and continues to advance BLA and go-to-market preparations.
Opthea's newly formed MAB consists of the following members:
David S. Boyer, MD, is a Board-certified ophthalmologist specializing in the treatment of diseases of the retina and vitreous, and a leading clinical researcher for new treatments in macular degeneration and diabetic macular edema. He is Senior Partner at the Retina-Vitreous Associates Medical Group, and an Adjunct Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology with the University of Southern California/Keck School of Medicine in Los Angeles, California.
Andrew Chang, AM, MBBS (Hons), PhD FRANZCO, FRACS, is a vitreoretinal surgeon and ophthalmologist. He holds academic appointments of Conjoint Professor of the Department of Surgery UNSW and Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Sydney. He is a consultant ophthalmologist and the Head of Ophthalmology at the Sydney Eye Hospital, and the Medical Director of Sydney Retina Clinic, Australia.
Frank G. Holz, MD, FEBO, FARVO, is Professor and Chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Bonn, Germany. His main research interests include the pathogenesis, structural and functional biomarkers and new therapies for macular and retinal diseases. His major clinical interest is medical and surgical retina. He also founded the GRADE Reading Center ...