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News|Videos|October 13, 2026

AAO 2026: Closing the gaps in geographic atrophy treatment

Liangbo Shen, MD, discussed unmet needs in geographic atrophy and how implants could ease treatment burden.

Complement inhibition has given patients with geographic atrophy (GA) hope, but important gaps remain, according to Liangbo Shen, MD, a vitreoretinal surgery fellow at Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, North Carolina. At the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) 2026 Annual Meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana, Shen spoke with Ophthalmology Times about where GA care stands and what patients still need.

Where does GA treatment stand?

More than a decade ago, some clinicians questioned whether GA could be treated at all, Shen said. Complement inhibition “represents a major step forward to offer some hope to patients that we can actually slow down GA progression,” he said.

The 2 approved therapies, pegcetacoplan (Syfovre; Apellis Pharmaceuticals) and avacincaptad pegol (Izervay; Astellas Pharma), slow lesion growth by about 12% to 22% but have not shown a significant visual benefit in phase 3 trials.¹ Patients also need injections every month or every 2 months for life, which is a heavy burden for older patients.

What do patients still need?

Shen outlined 4 priorities:

  • Better efficacy
  • Fewer safety risks, such as new choroidal neovascularization
  • Dosing every 3 or 4 months
  • Therapies that preserve or restore vision

Could implants reduce treatment burden?

Retina specialists already use several implants, and other agents in development use a similar design. Delivering small molecules through a sustained-release implant is “a really interesting way” to reduce treatment burden, Shen said.

What should clinicians take away?

“I think the main takeaway is hope,” Shen said. Patients with GA face a high risk of depression, and many ask when better treatments will arrive, especially those who have already lost vision in one eye. “I think the hope is very important for our patients,” he said.

Shen discusses phase 2 results for the inflammasome inhibitor kamuvudine K8 in part 1 of this interview.

For more from the meeting, visit Ophthalmology Times’ AAO 2026 coverage.

Reference
1. Shen LL. A phase 2 clinical trial of the inflammasome inhibitor kamuvudine K8 in geographic atrophy. Presented at: Retina Subspecialty Day, American Academy of Ophthalmology 2026 Annual Meeting; October 9, 2026; New Orleans, LA. Session RET12.

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