Genentech, Inc. (a member of the Roche Group) recently announced that its Phase III study RISE, evaluating the drug Lucentis (ranibizumab injection) in patients with diabetic macular edema (DME), met its primary endpoint. Results showed that a significantly higher percentage of patients receiving monthly Lucentis had an improvement in vision on the eye chart at 24 months, compared to patients in a control group who received a placebo injection.

DME is a serious complication of diabetes that involves swelling of the retina, which can lead to blurred vision and blindness, and affects up to 10 percent of people with diabetes. Although Lucentis was recently approved to treat DME in Europe, no drugs to treat DME are currently approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 

Genentech is simultaneously conducting a second Phase III study, known as RIDE.  RISE and RIDE are two identical, parallel studies designed to support application to FDA for Lucentis for DME.

About JDRF
JDRF is a leader in setting the agenda for diabetes research worldwide, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of type 1 research. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Type 1 diabetes is a disease which strikes children and adults suddenly and requires multiple injections of insulin daily or a continuous infusion of insulin through a pump. Insulin, however, is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation.

Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.4 billion to diabetes research, including more than $100 million last year.

For more information, please visit http://www.jdrf.org/