As the baby boomer generation grows older, eye diseases like cataracts, age-related macular degeneration and glaucoma are becoming more prevalent. According to the National Eye Institute, more than half of all Americans 80 years or older either have cataracts or have had surgery to treat cataracts, 10 percent of adults age 50 or older have early stages of AMD, and 3 million Americans have glaucoma.
Eye researchers at Vanderbilt are studying how the eyes form these diseases as they age and how to treat or regenerate eye tissue, asking: What are current treatments for these diseases? How are scientific discoveries changing the future of these diseases? And how are new technologies moving these discoveries forward?
In honor of Cataracts Awareness Month, join Aaron Conley, director of external affairs, partnerships and communications at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine Basic Sciences, as he delves into these questions and more during the next Basic Sciences Lab-to-Table Conversation, “Science of Sight: Advances in Eye Research.”
The virtual event will be on June 27 at 11 a.m. CT and will feature the following panelists:
- Sabine Fuhrmann, associate professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences and cell and developmental biology
- Tonia Rex, associate vice chair for translational research, Spencer and Marlene Hays Director in Translational Vision Research and professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences
- Kevin Schey, professor of biochemistry, chemistry and ophthalmology and visual sciences, and director of core facilities at the Mass Spectrometry Research Center
The event is free and open to the public. Registration is required.