The Glaucoma Foundation, Glaucoma Research Foundation awarded 2008 AGS President's Award

The Glaucoma Foundation (TGF) and the Glaucoma Research Foundation (GRF) are joint recipients of the American Glaucoma Society's (AGS) 2008 President's Award. The award was presented at the society's annual meeting here on March 7 to Scott R. Christensen, president and chief executive officer (CEO), of the Glaucoma Foundation and Thomas M. Brunner, president and CEO of the Glaucoma Research Foundation.

Recipients of the annual AGS President's Award are chosen by the AGS president and approved by a special committee of the organization for "significant contributions to the glaucoma community . . . "

In previous years, distinguished individuals in the field have received the AGS President's Award. This is the first year that glaucoma organizations are being recognized with this award.

TGF was founded in 1984 by Robert Ritch, MD, to fund groundbreaking research and to educate the public about the disease and the importance of early detection to prevent blindness. TGF awards seed grants primarily in these areas: optic nerve rescue and regeneration, molecular genetics and the use of nanotechnology for monitoring IOP, and diagnosing and monitoring damage to the optic nerve and delivering drugs and other therapies.

GRF was founded by Robert Shaffer, MD, H. Dunbar Hoskins Jr., MD, and John Hetherington, MD, in San Francisco in 1978. Its research programs fund innovative projects that meet the criteria of its strategic goals: protecting and restoring the optic nerve, understanding the IOP system and developing better treatments, accurately monitoring glaucoma's progression, finding the genes responsible for glaucoma, and determining the risk factors of glaucoma-with the ultimate goal of finding a cure.

Researchers funded by both foundations frequently use preliminary data from their investigations to support proposals for larger grants from such entities as the National Institutes of Health.