BRIEF—New treatments for blindness: underrated investment case

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the leading cause of blindness in older adults across western countries. It damages the retina but its exact causes are not fully understood, according to a new report from Edison Investment Research.

The treatment market for neovascular AMD (often referred to as wet AMD) is already valued at more than $5.7 billion and is still expanding. Two treatments – ranibizumab, Novartis’ (NOVN: VX) and Roche’s (ROG: SIX) Lucentis, and aflibercept, Bayer’s (BAYN: DE) Eylea – achieved combined sales growth of c 9% of in 2019. These treatments are targeted at c 2.8 million people across the US and Europe, most of whom would otherwise become legally blind.

Another c 18–22 million people in these regions have early to-intermediate forms of dry AMD. Dry AMD can progress to geographic atrophy (GA), which Edison estimates affects a further c 2.7 million. There is no widely accepted and approved treatment for either condition and GA often also leads to legal blindness and loss of independence. Effective dry AMD and GA treatments could be blockbusters, adding billions of dollars to the market.

There is also a significant opportunity for investors as companies compete to improve the effectiveness of existing wet AMD treatments, make them more convenient and/or reduce the need for invasive procedures.

Read the full report here: https://www.edisongroup.com/sector-report/amd-emerging-therapies/27680