Reversing Hereditary Blindness | Baylor St. Luke’s Ophthalmology

This novel therapy known as LUXTURNA treats patients with RPE65-associated Leber Congenital Amaurosis (LCA), an eye disorder caused by mutations in both copies of the RPE65 gene, which alter a key vision-enabling protein. The newly FDA-approved therapy option developed by Spark Therapeutics reverses the effects of this condition by replacing the mutated gene that causes the disease with a healthy copy of the gene.

Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center is one of ten institutions in the United States to offer this therapy and is home to the only retina surgeons in Texas who are specialized and trained in this advancement.

LUXTURNA is the first directly administered gene therapy approved in the United States that targets a disease caused by mutations in a specific gene. This latest advancement signals the potential of gene therapy to successfully treat additional retinal genetic diseases for which there are no other treatments.

#Ophthalmology #Blindness #GeneTherapy