Research partners in collaborative venture will help rapidly prototype new diagnostic and clinical treatment approaches

Vision impaired by age-related macular degeneration, a progressive, degenerative disease of the retina and the most common cause of vision loss for people over 50.
The Retina Foundation of the Southwest and SMU’s Bobby B. Lyle School of Engineering will collaborate to create the Clinical Center of Innovation for Age-Related Macular Degeneration.
Supported by a $2.5 million grant award from the W. W. Caruth, Jr. Foundation at Communities Foundation of Texas (CFT), the center will be housed at the Retina Foundation in Dallas.
The new collaborative venture will help to rapidly prototype new diagnostic and clinical treatment approaches, focusing on the specific needs of patients who are losing their vision to age-related macular degeneration.
Physician Karl Csaky, Chief Medical Director and T. Boone Pickens Senior Scientist at the Retina Foundation of the Southwest, will lead the joint venture, along with Marc Christensen, Dean of SMU’s Lyle School of Engineering.
Age-related macular degeneration is a progressive, degenerative disease of the retina and is the most common cause of vision loss for individuals 50 years and older. Currently, there are 18 million Americans who have some form of age-related macular degeneration.

Pictured, left to right, Marc Christensen, Dean, Lyle School, SMU; Monica Egert Smith, Community Philanthropy Director, W.W. Caruth, Jr. Foundation; Brent Christopher, President and CEO, Communities Foundation; and Karl Csaky, Chief Medical Officer, Retina Foundation.
It is projected that the population over the age of 60 will double by the year 2030, which will dramatically increase the number of individuals affected by this disease. At present there are few effective treatments for the majority of patients who suffer from age-related macular degeneration.
“I am extremely thankful to the Caruth Foundation for providing their generous support for a unique approach to help patients with age-related macular degeneration,” said Dr. Csaky. “This one of a kind initiative will focus on leveraging the strengths of two preeminent Dallas institutions.”