The drug bevacizumab (Avastin), known primarily as a treatment drug in colorectal and other cancers, improved vision for patients with radiation retinopathy in a recent study.

Radiation retinopathy is a common complication of radiation therapy for tumors or inflammations of the choroids, retina, orbit and paranasal sinuses. It can result in retinal edema, hemorrhaging and even blindness. Paul T. Finger, MD, and Kimberly Chin, OD, of the New York Eye Cancer Center periodically injected Avastin every six to eight weeks in six patients who developed radiation retinopathy.

Decreased mascular edema was the most common finding and all patients experienced improvement or stabilization of visual acuity. The drug worked by reducing swelling and abnormal blood vessel growth, which are the major causes of irreversible vision loss in patients who suffer from radiation retinopathy.

The study appears in the June 2007 issue of the Archives of Ophthalmology.