The Best Christmas Gift

When I turned on the computer this morning, I could read text easily for the first time since the summer.

I have macular degeneration in my left eye. The macula is the part of the retina that processes fine detail. Degeneration means, in my case, that there was a large blister-like structure on it.

Seeing that structure was frightening. The retina should have been a smooth, concave curve, with layers. Some of the layers had come apart. The words were also frightening. One of my mentors, thirty years ago, had macular degeneration. He became blind. I helped him navigate the Lab’s bureaucracy to get what he needed to do his job.

I could not read music. I could not tell an A from an E from a C in the bass clef.

I go to a group practice, Eye Associates of New Mexico. They have all the instruments, which have developed to a remarkable state. They can image a cross-section of the retina. Think about that: a cross-section into the eyeball, not just a surface photo. I’m not sure of all the details, but they depend on laser-induced fluorescence and probably a calculational approach that a postdoc working for me back in the 1990s had a part in developing.

A simple scan shows exactly what is happening inside my eye. It was bad back in the summer, and the reason my vision was distorted was obvious. Fortunately, there are now a number of treatments now for macular degeneration.

My treatment is an injection, right into the eyeball, of Avastin, which started out as a cancer medication. It inhibits excessive blood vessel formation, which is part of the degeneration process. “Let’s see if this can reverse the damage,” the doctor said last summer. He did not promise anything.

I had my fourth injection yesterday. It’s not as bad as the initial thought of a sharp stick to the eye, not as bad as most dental procedures in my opinion. The greatest danger is of infection, and the people helping me are scrupulous about that.

My eye is irritated after the injection, mostly from the stuff they drop into my eye, rather than the injection itself. “This will numb your eye. This is a disinfectant.” They have at least three or four different sets of drops and a gel. I tape a cotton ball across it to keep it closed, which helps with the irritation.

This morning was the reveal. I tend to see an improvement immediately after an injection and then a few weeks later. I am almost back to where I started. Still some distortion, but much, much better.

This is the best Christmas gift. I’m also very thankful that I have Medicare and don’t have to worry about the vagaries of insurance companies.

[The visual at the top of this post is from the Cleveland Clinic, whose writeup on macular degeneration is the best I’ve found. Even so, it misses the amazing imaging machines that have been helping me. I’m kind of shocked at how bad some of the explanations from other organizations are.

I’d appreciate it if commenters would restrain themselves from explaining to me how macular degeneration or those imaging machines work. That’s not what this post is about, and I am capable of figuring that out myself. I am comfortable with my partial understanding of all this. When I need more, I’ll consult my doctors.}

Cross-posted to Nuclear Diner