Genes don’t affect response to anti-VEGF treatment

This analysis of data from the CATT and IVAN trials found no evidence that VEGFR2 genotypes affect response to anti-VEGF therapy in patients with wet AMD, contrary to a previous report.

The authors present the largest clinical series to date evaluating the effect of genes on treatment response in 1,347 patients with wet AMD, adding valuable information to help clinicians and patients better understand the pathophysiology and treatment of wet AMD.

In this study, investigators assessed the effect of 2 single nucleotide polymorphisms (rs4576072 and rs6828477) within the VEGFR2 gene on visual acuity in 1,347 patients who received either ranibizumab or bevacizumab. The main analysis included patients who were homozygous for the C (minor) allele versus those homozygous for the T allele.

At 1 year, there were no statistically significant difference in the mean change in visual acuity between genotypes of either SNP (P>0.05).

These findings directly contradict a 2014 case series of 366 patients that found that rs4576072 and rs6828477 SNPs had better response rates, with visual acuity improving by 3 lines over controls at 1 year (P<0.05). The authors of this study suggest that baseline variables may have contributed to the different outcomes in both studies.