Bringing MacTel into focus
Macular telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel) is a rare, bilateral, neurodegenerative retinal disease leading to vision loss for which there are currently no FDA-approved treatments.1,2
At Neurotech, we are focused on developing therapies for conditions that impact vision, including MacTel.
What is MacTel?
MacTel is a progressive neurodegenerative retinal disease, typically affecting both eyes1
Symptoms generally appear when patients are in their 40s and 50s4
It causes irreversible loss of photoreceptors leading to vision loss3
Estimated US prevalence:
0.1% of people aged 43-865
Common symptoms of MacTel include:
MacTel progresses differently for everyone
- Onset may be subtle; initial symptoms may be impaired reading ability and/or distorted vision (metamorphopsia)6
- Paracentral scotomas (blind spots slightly off center)—a hallmark finding in MacTel—may impair reading ability but not affect a best corrected visual acuity (BCVA) test, making detection of the disease via routine eye exams challenging; accurate diagnosis is often delayed4,10
- As the disease progresses, patients experience gradual but irreversible vision loss3
- Spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) can detect early retina changes associated with MacTel3
- Activities of daily living—reading and driving—may become difficult or impossible7-9
Patients emphasize the difficulties associated with living with MacTel
“The first symptom I had, where I knew something was wrong, was with my driving. Every linear line of my vision was bent. I was constantly seeing other cars driving in my lane. As such, I could not pass vehicles anymore because I could not discern where the vehicles were. And if the cars were white, silver or grey, I could not see them at all.”
- MacTel Patient
“My best explanation, of the way that I see, is that looking out of my left eye is like trying to see through the clouds in Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night.’ Lines seem straight until they are not. In the center of my vision is a dot, letters lift upward, some are missing and some swirl as I try to read across the line. Words are pushed together, and letters disappear as I am reading. As the Executive Director of a writing organization, this is horrid and limiting.”
- MacTel Patient
“I don’t feel independent. I feel like someone who used to be independent and this scares me. I know it’s only a matter of time before I can no longer drive.”
- MacTel Patient
“I’m still trying to maintain hope because when I have children in a year or two, I really want to see their faces as they grow up.”
- MacTel Patient
“The first symptom I had, where I knew something was wrong, was with my driving. Every linear line of my vision was bent. I was constantly seeing other cars driving in my lane. As such, I could not pass vehicles anymore because I could not discern where the vehicles were. And if the cars were white, silver or grey, I could not see them at all.”
- MacTel Patient
“My best explanation, of the way that I see, is that looking out of my left eye is like trying to see through the clouds in Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night.’ Lines seem straight until they are not. In the center of my vision is a dot, letters lift upward, some are missing and some swirl as I try to read across the line. Words are pushed together, and letters disappear as I am reading. As the Executive Director of a writing organization, this is horrid and limiting.”
- MacTel Patient
“I don’t feel independent. I feel like someone who used to be independent and this scares me. I know it’s only a matter of time before I can no longer drive.”
- MacTel Patient
“I’m still trying to maintain hope because when I have children in a year or two, I really want to see their faces as they grow up.”
- MacTel Patient
“The first symptom I had, where I knew something was wrong, was with my driving. Every linear line of my vision was bent. I was constantly seeing other cars driving in my lane. As such, I could not pass vehicles anymore because I could not discern where the vehicles were. And if the cars were white, silver or grey, I could not see them at all.”
- MacTel Patient
“My best explanation, of the way that I see, is that looking out of my left eye is like trying to see through the clouds in Van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night.’ Lines seem straight until they are not. In the center of my vision is a dot, letters lift upward, some are missing and some swirl as I try to read across the line. Words are pushed together, and letters disappear as I am reading. As the Executive Director of a writing organization, this is horrid and limiting.”
- MacTel Patient
“I don’t feel independent. I feel like someone who used to be independent and this scares me. I know it’s only a matter of time before I can no longer drive.”
- MacTel Patient
“I’m still trying to maintain hope because when I have children in a year or two, I really want to see their faces as they grow up.”
- MacTel Patient
Neurotech’s Encapsulated Cell Therapy (ECT) Platform
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Neurotech is pioneering a different approach to treat people with chronic retinal diseases.
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References: 1. Kedarisetti KC et al. Macular telangiectasia type 2: a comprehensive review. Clin Ophthalmol. 2022;16:3297-3309. doi: 10.2147/OPTH.S373538 2. Schmetterer L et al. Endpoints for clinical trials in ophthalmology. Prog Retin Eye Res. 2023;97:101160. doi: 10.1016/j.preteyeres.2022.101160 3. Goerdt L et al. Relative ellipsoid zone reflectivity in macular telangiectasia type 2. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2023;64(10):21. doi: 10.1167/iovs.64.10.21 4. Charbel Issa P et al. Macular telangiectasia type 2. Prog Retin Eye Res. 2013;34:49-77. doi: 10.1016/j.preteyeres.2012.11.002 5. Klein R et al. The prevalence of macular telangiectasia type 2 in the Beaver Dam eye study. Am J Ophthalmol. 2010;150(1):55-62.e2. doi: 10.1016/j.ajo.2010.02.013 6. Khodabande A et al. Management of idiopathic macular telangiectasia type 2. Ophthalmol Ther. 2019;8(2):155-175. doi: 10.1007/s40123-019-0170-1 7. Clemons TE et al. Macular Telangiectasia Research Group. The National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire in the Macular Telangiectasia (MacTel) Project. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2008;49(10):4340-4346. doi: 10.1167/iovs.08-1749 8. Lamoureux EL et al. The longitudinal impact of macular telangiectasia (MacTel) type 2 on vision-related quality of life. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2011;52(5):2520-2524. doi: 10.1167/iovs.10-6568 9. Heeren TFC et al. MacTel study group. Macular telangiectasia type 2: visual acuity, disease end stage, and the MacTel area: MacTel project report number 8. Ophthalmology. 2020;127(11):1539-1548. doi: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2020.03.040 10. Heeren TF et al. Progression of vision loss in macular telangiectasia type 2. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2015;56(6):3905-3912. doi: 10.1167/iovs.15-16915