Avacincaptad pegol

Avacincaptad pegol is an RNA aptamer covalently bound to a branched polyethylene glycol (PEG) molecule. It was developed to treat an advanced form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) called geographic atrophy (GA). AMD is the leading cause of vision loss in developed countries for people over 50 years old, with a global estimate of 170 million individuals affected. AMD eventually progresses to bilateral and irreversible loss of vision, whether or not the patients have the non-neovascular (dry) or the neovascular (wet) form of AMD. Although anti-VEGF therapy is available for the neovascular form of AMD, no treatment was approved for GA.

Avacincaptag pegol was approved by the FDA on August 4, 2023, under the brand name IZERVAY for the treatment of GA secondary to AMD. This approval is based on the positive results obtained from 2 phase 3 clinical trials GATHER1 and GATHER2.