Urgent appeal launched to continue sight-saving research

Eye research charity Fight for Sight has launched an urgent appeal, after a survey by the charity found that COVID-19 is putting new sight-saving treatments at risk. 

The Fight for Sight survey of researchers in the field of ophthalmology found that 96% of respondents believe COVID-19 will delay the delivery of their research projects, while 93% of respondents cannot access their labs during lockdown. 

16% of those surveyed said they have seen their work diverted to finding treatments to COVID-19, while 9% of researchers have, themselves, been diverted to the frontline in the fight against COVID-19. 90% say future research funding has either become uncertain or stopped completely or to some extent as a result of the pandemic, while 87% have seen a change to their type of work.

The charity is concerned that this disruption to research will result in progress towards new sight-saving treatments coming to a standstill, with a knock-on effect for the two million people living with sight loss in the UK.

Chief executive of Fight for Sight, Sherine Krause, said: “Eye health is an urgent public health issue and has major implications not just for those living with the everyday impact of sight loss, but also for the whole of society, the economy and beyond. Our survey shows that right now, eye research is at risk of coming to a standstill. Before the pandemic we were so close to breakthroughs for new treatments and cures that could transform the lives of people with sight loss, but all of this is now at risk. With one in five people in the UK being affected by sight loss in their lifetime, we need to act now to ensure that eye research gets the funding it needs to allow researchers to return to their labs and restart their projects. Let's not let COVID-19 affect our long-term mission – to create a world everyone can see.”

One researcher who has been redeployed to the frontline is Fight for Sight’s research fellow Dr Zakariya Jarrar from King’s College. Dr Jarrar, an ophthalmologist, was due to begin his research into the role of the gut microbiome in age-related macular degeneration this summer, however, due to the current pandemic he is now working in intensive care for the NHS.

Dr Jarrar said: “I’m an academic clinical fellow so 75% of my work is clinical and 25% is research. As part of my fellowship, I was supposed to be starting three months of research from May, but all clinicians have been asked to return to clinical duties to help with the COVID situation and we’ve been advised to put all research on hold until further notice.

“Working in intensive care is very different to my normal work as an ophthalmologist – I’m certainly not used to working night shifts, but it’s good to feel I am doing everything I can to help during the current crisis. Although I have never worked in intensive care like this before, I am very well supported and there are a lot of consultants around if I have questions.”

To support researchers, Fight for Sight is launching an urgent appeal to help researchers cover the costs in delays to projects and returning to the lab.

For example, many researchers use 'mini retinas' that are grown in the lab to model different disease and test new treatments. The retinas take six months to grow and these will have been destroyed as a result of pandemic delays - this sets work back and creates extra cost.

You can find out more about Fight for Sight’s urgent appeal at https://www.fightforsight.org.uk/covid19/.