An estimated 9.6 million people in the US have diabetic retinopathy, and roughly 1 in 3 patients with diabetes miss annual eye exams as AI screening and new therapies reshape care.
News|Articles|July 13, 2026
Diabetic eye disease: Developments that defined the first half of 2026
Author(s)Kassi Filkins
A recap of the FDA approvals, phase 3 readouts, and pipeline data that shaped diabetic eye disease care in the first half of 2026.
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The first half of 2026 brought a steady drumbeat of regulatory and clinical news across the diabetic eye disease space, from a landmark autonomous AI screening clearance to phase 3 data challenging the decades-old standard of care for proliferative DR. Below is an overview of key developments from the first six months of 2026 in diabetic macular edema (DME) and diabetic retinopathy (DR).
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