The retinal journey: Harnessing our heritage and excellence in diabetes to stop vision loss

As part of our Transforming Science Day on 2nd October 2023, we look forward to sharing the latest news from our Retinal Health division on how collaboration and innovation are driving the changes that are so desperately needed for people at risk of vision loss. For most people, losing their vision is a terrifying prospect. Almost 70% of people around the globe would rather take a decade off their life or sacrifice a limb than go blind.1 Here at Boehringer Ingelheim, we believe nobody with a retinal condition should be facing this fear.

?

Our story in Retinal Health begins with our heritage in diabetes. Ten years ago, as our diabetes therapy portfolio was going from strength to strength, there was a fear that people with diabetes repeatedly shared with us, a potential complication of even greater concern than all the others – of losing their vision. Diabetic retinopathy (DR), a complication of diabetes mellitus damaging retinal blood vessels, affects 1 in 3 people with diabetes and is the leading cause of preventable blindness in working-age people.2 And by the time people notice an effect on their central vision, irreversible damage to the retina has often already occurred.

?

As the retina is a neurovascular unit, we realized we could use our broad research knowledge from other therapy areas to advance innovation in three of the main drivers of retinal disease: neurodegeneration, inflammation and vascular dysfunction. For the first compounds we developed in DR, the results were so promising, we expanded our scope to other retinal diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and inherited retinal conditions, such as Stargardt disease. Hence the Boehringer Ingelheim Retinal Health division was set up.

?

Since those early days, we have harnessed our internal expertise to unlock the secrets of the retina, developing multiple programs, and resulting in a diversified portfolio of several drug candidates and delivery technologies. We aspire to better care for people with retinal conditions, resulting in a paradigm shift where earlier detection and intervention with individualized treatment will stop vision loss in its tracks, preserving the retina, and protecting both eyesight and people’s way of life.

?

We recognize that this is an ambitious goal, and one we can’t tackle alone. That’s why we’re leveraging a network of collaborations and fostering open-minded engagement with various stakeholders. When people from diverse backgrounds work together, innovation thrives, and our partnerships will support our key areas of research that ultimately improve the lives of people living with retinal conditions.

?

In research, our first goal is to deepen the understanding of the disease pathways and pathophysiology underlying retinal conditions. Targeting earlier stages also requires prognostic and predictive biomarkers for disease progression and treatment response. We also need to go beyond BCVA (Best Corrected Visual Accuity) as an endpoint, and explore novel, patient-relevant outcomes. To that point, we actively seek to partner with patient organizations and people with retinal conditions at all stages of development, to understand the real-lived experience and deliver meaningful patient-centred outcomes.

?

We believe in the potential of combining novel treatment approaches with the power of AI and predictive analytics in ophthalmology in order to provide the right treatment, to the right patient, at the right time. We made the strategic choice to collaborate with academic or industry leaders in ophthalmic data science and digital technology to accelerate the development of digital and artificial intelligence tools with predictive analytics that will enhance our research program and ultimately lead to earlier detection in clinical practice, which is key to preventing irreversible vision loss and improving outcomes.

?

Through innovative research and trusted partnerships, Boehringer Ingelheim is leading retinal health into a future of vision preservation?and protection for all, where early detection and intervention lead to a brighter outlook for people with retinal conditions.

?

For more information on our Transforming Science Day, please see here.

?

References

1.?????? Bausch and Lomb. Barometer of Global Eye Health. 2012. https://www.bausch.com/news/archive-news-releases/?id=287

2.?????? Wong TY, Sabanayagam C. Strategies to Tackle the Global Burden of Diabetic Retinopathy: From Epidemiology to Artificial Intelligence. Ophthalmologica. 2020;243(1):9–20.