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Ophthalmology and Optometry
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Friday, 18 May 2012 |
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 Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (US) have developed a genetic test that can accurately predict whether the most common form of eye cancer will spread to other parts of the body, particularly the liver.
In 459 patients with ocular melanoma at 12 centers in the United States and Canada, the researchers found the test could successfully classify tumors more than 97 percent of the time. Principal investigator J. William Harbour believes the test should allow ocular oncologists to quickly evaluate the risks associated with particular tumors and to begin treatment the moment they can detect any spread of the cancer.
Melanoma of the eye is relatively rare, diagnosed in about 2,000 people in the United States each year. Advances in treatment have allowed surgeons to preserve patients’ vision, but when cancer spreads beyond the eye, it often is deadly.
About a decade ago, Harbour began using gene expression profiling to monitor the activity of thousands of genes in and around ocular melanoma tumors. Initially, Harbour’s group identified differences in approximately 1,000 genes between class 1 and class 2 tumors, but they whittled down that number, hoping to develop a simple test that could be used easily by ophthalmologists. Eventually, they settled on about a dozen genes that could be evaluated in tumor samples collected with a needle biopsy. Testing tumor tissue from his own ocular melanoma patients at the Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University in St. Louis, Harbour found that the gene expression profile test was very good at identifying the two classes of tumors. Then he started recruiting other centers to test the method, too.
Doctors at the other centers collected tumor samples and shipped them to Harbour’s lab. Not knowing anything about which tumor samples came from which patients, the lab then analyzed the samples and made predictions about which tumors were likely to spread. Although it can take up to five years before there is any evidence that cancer has spread beyond the eye, this study went back less than two years later and tested predictions against what actually had happened. Almost 62 percent of those tested (276 patients) had class 1 tumors, which were unlikely to spread. About a year and a half after the samples were tested, only three of those tumors had metastasized. Meanwhile, 38 percent of those tested (170 patients) had class 2 tumors, indicating that spread of the cancer was more likely. In that group, 44 (26 percent) developed metastatic disease during the study period. Had patients been followed longer, more likely would have experienced spread of their cancer. Statistical predictions estimate that among class 2 patients, about 60 percent would have metastatic disease within three years, and approximately 80 percent in five years.
In the past, some centers relied on a chromosome test to identify eye tumors that were likely to spread. That test looked at chromosome 3 because many ocular melanoma tumors have only one copy of that chromosome. But the 15-gene expression profile test is more accurate. It takes a more complete “snapshot” of the entire tumor. Harbour says the results of the chromosome test can change, depending on which part of a tumor gets sampled.
Another strength of the test is that it can identify which patients will need the closest monitoring. On the other hand, the current study found that more than 60 percent of patients with ocular melanoma have class 1 tumors. Those patients don’t need to be followed with the same frequency.
The study will appear in an upcoming issue of the journal Ophthalmology, but is now online.
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Companies
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Thursday, 17 May 2012 |
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 Following the non-renewal of its Armani license Safilo has announced that 1000 preliminary redundancies have been identified in its Italian production sites. Safilo has immediately set in motion a negotiation table with the trade unions and workers’ representatives in order to identify the best industrial and organizational structure for the future, with the aim of minimizing the social impact and safeguarding the Safilo's competitiveness, for the benefit of the workers who will remain in force, by carrying out its mid and long term plans for which “Made in Italy”, innovation, and product quality remain an absolute priority.
All parties have agreed upon and set down a calendar of technical meetings to closely examine the situation which will take place until May 28. It has been furthermore agreed that, during this period, all possible efforts will be made to identify shared solutions to ensure the best possible management of the overstaffing problem.
The Armani license is now with Luxottica.
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Australian News
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Wednesday, 16 May 2012 |
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“The Macular Degeneration Foundation (MDF) is relieved that the Federal Government’s budget announcement to introduce a cap on the Medicare item number for the treatment of wet Age-related Macular Degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of blindness in Australia should have minimal impact on patients, said MDF CEO, Julie Heraghty.
From 1 November 2012 intravitreal injections will have an Extended Medicare Safety Net (EMSN) cap equal to 80 per cent of the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) or $236.12 (based on current fees). This will mean that for the vast majority of patients there will be no change to their out of pocket costs.
No patient who is charged less than $546 for their injection will be worse off. 90 per cent of providers have average fees below the minimum fee for the patient to be affected ($546) and it is estimated that 85 per cent of current out of hospital services will not be affected by the cap. “The cap has been set at a constructive and workable level so as not to impact on access to affordable treatment for most patients. Without treatment, wet AMD patients will typically lose significant sight within months. Almost 30% will be legally blind within 12 months, and 40% by 24 months,” said Heraghty.
Under the changes, for a small number of patients where the doctor is charging more than $546, there will be additional out of pocket expenses. Julie Heraghty said, “The MDF is committed to monitoring high fee treatment areas very closely to ensure patients impacted by this cap are able to access sight saving treatment”. In 2009 the Macular Degeneration Foundation fought hard to ensure patients were not impacted by an unrealistic cap and fortunately in 2012 the Government has taken our messages on board and have set a cap that is workable.
Capping of Item 42740 (used for the injection into the eye of the treatment for wet AMD) was undertaken in the Federal Budget May 2009. This was rejected in the Senate and subsequently the decision was reversed by the Government in September 2009.
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Product News
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Tuesday, 15 May 2012 |
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A few months ago, theo launched the limited Hierro sunglasses collection by Tim Van Steenbergen in black-and-white. Now, theo has something else in mind...it’s all about colour. The front in acetate contrasts with the plastic or metal – depending on the model – temples. The ZEISS sunglass lenses provide optimal protection for the eyes. And for the first time, theo is also including polarized lenses in the collection. Of the eight colour combinations available per model, two come with polarized lenses. 
Colourful ‘fiestas patronales’
Every Spanish village or town holds an extravagant annual festival for the local patron saint. The scene is set especially by the colourful costumes, flowers, balloons and a variety of market stalls that bring the street to life! And theo always loves a good party! So it was high time to apply this riot of colour to the latest theo by Tim Van Steenbergen sunglasses. What better names could theo choose for the six models than those of Spanish patron Saints?
Collection Tim Van Steenbergen
The Northern Hemisphere's spring/summer 2012 clothing collection contains much more colour that we are used to from Tim. Bright green trousers, bright blue details and coloured areas that contrast with each other. The 1920s (Bauhaus) and the 1980s (Dr. Martens in all kinds of colours) are strikingly present. This is also expressed in the glasses collection. Especially in the combination decorative vs. tough, mat vs. shiny or a decorative element next to a solid colour.
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Ophthalmology and Optometry
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Monday, 14 May 2012 |
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 Treating eyes with gentle infra-red light can help prevent the damage caused by subsequent exposure to bright light, new scientific research has found. A breakthrough by researchers at The Vision Centre offers new hope to people who suffer vision loss due to constant exposure to bright sunlight or artificial lights – such as construction workers, sportspeople, fishermen, farmers, welders, actors, entertainers and others.
Dr Krisztina Valter and PhD researcher Rizalyn Albarracin at The Vision Centre and Australian National University have shown that pre-treatment with near infra-red light prevents a build-up of scar tissue in the retina causing subsequent harm to sight.
“There’s a group of cells that look after our vision and work behind the scenes,” says Ms Albarracin, “called Müller cells. They act to protect the retina by clearing toxins and inducing healing whenever there is injury to the vision cells. However, their protection is a double-edge sword for the eyes. When the retina comes under extreme stress, as when it is exposed to intensely bright light and loses a large number of vision cells, the Müller cells can over-react by multiplying and forming scar tissue behind the retina. When this occurs, two things happen: first, the vision cells close to where the scar tissue forms will stop working. Secondly, the scar tissue blocks the blood supply to the outer retina, so that other vision cells are starved of oxygen, glucose and other nutrients vital to their survival. As a result more vision cells die, which in turn provokes Müller cells to work even harder, forming more scar tissues and setting up a vicious cycle,” Ms Albarracin explains.
“We found that the treatment with mild NIR successfully inhibits the Müller cells from multiplying and forming scar tissue,” says team leader Dr Krisztina Valter. “Technically, our results showed that 670 nm light pretreatment ameliorates light-induced changes in the expression of Müller-cell specific markers for structure, stress, metabolism and inflammation. This suggests that 670 nm light pre-treatment may promote neuroprotective effects in the retina from light-induced damage. Our findings indicate that it may be possible to pre-treat someone who knows that they will be exposed to bright lights and so reduce the potential damage it can cause. This would be very helpful for people working in bright sunlight, under powerful artificial lamps or in occupations such as welding, as it would reduce the amount of cumulative damage they can suffer to their vision of years of exposure to bright light,” Dr Valter says.
The researchers used an array of small LEDs (light emitting diodes) that have been tuned to produce near infra-red light at a particular wavelength – 670 nanometres. These units are low-cost, making a future preventative treatment for vision loss highly affordable – especially when compared with cost of lost sight, Dr Valter says. “Near infra-red therapy is very benign, easy to use and involves no discomfort to the patient,” she adds. “It is already approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for use in sports medicine, for hair loss and so on – so developing a novel therapeutic application for the eyes is likely to be less complex and protracted than, say, developing a new drug,” she adds. The study “670nm Red Light Preconditioning Supports Müller Cell Function: Evidence from the White Light-induced Damage Model in the Rat Retina” by Rizalyn Albarracin and Krisztina Valter is published in the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology.
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Product News
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Friday, 11 May 2012 |
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For this spring/summer (in the Northern Hemisphere) 2012 MYKITA has transferred the panto form of the 1930s into the present. The design and styling of the four new models are representative of a recurring theme in MYKITA’s philosophy: employing technical and aesthetic innovation to create collections that adopt classic forms of the past while at the same time being an expression of the present.
 TEITI, THORVALD and CECILE reference the quintessential ”intellectual” glasses from the 1920s and 1930s: the panto form. The word panto has its origins in a Greek term meaning ”all, every, entire”. The size of the lens corresponds to the human eye socket, which is why panto is considered the first lens form to enable the wearer to see ”everything”. This classic spectacles frame celebrated its first comeback in the late 1960s as an expression of opposition to the traditional, conservative lifestyle. In the 1980s the fashion world became interested in the panto look and popularised it in all colours and forms.
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