About MACUGEN®
(pegaptanib sodium injection)
In December 2004, MACUGEN became the first anti-VEGF inhibitor to be FDA approved for the treatment of wet AMD. MACUGEN is effective at treating all types of wet AMD by slowing vision loss. It is available by prescription only.
While MACUGEN is effective at slowing vision loss, it is still important to detect wet AMD as early as possible to help preserve vision. Wet AMD is a serious and progressive condition that can cause rapid central vision loss. Without treatment, patients can have severe vision loss in the affected eye within months of diagnosis.
Learn more about the SYMPTOMS OF WET AMD
How MACUGEN Works
MACUGEN works differently from all other treatments for wet AMD. MACUGEN selectively blocks an essential signal in the eye that is believed to cause abnormal blood vessels to grow and leak. By helping to slow the growth of these abnormal blood vessels, MACUGEN can slow the damage they do to your sight. MACUGEN is not a cure, but it can help to slow further vision loss and help preserve what vision you currently have.
Ask your eye doctor how MACUGEN can help you. If you don’t have an eye doctor, use the Eye Doctor Finder to locate one near you.
Learn more about MACUGEN and wet AMD by downloading our educational brochure.
You will need Adobe® Reader® to download this file. If you don’t have Adobe Reader, you can download it for free.
MACUGEN is administered into the 
eye every 6 weeks. Your doctor
will determine how long you'll need treatment. Be sure to attend
follow-up appointments for eye exams and MACUGEN treatments
according to your doctor's recommendations.
How MACUGEN® (pegaptanib sodium injection)
is administered
MACUGEN is not a pill; no medicines in a pill form have been approved to treat wet AMD. MACUGEN is delivered by injection directly into the eye to reach the back of the eye where it is needed. Your eye doctor is trained in treating eye diseases and in giving eye injections. The needle used is very small. The needle is inserted near the edge of the eye, not in the center. While administering MACUGEN, your eye doctor will ask you to look in the opposite direction, so you will not see the needle during the injection procedure. During your treatment there are additional procedures your eye doctor will complete to administer MACUGEN, such as numbing the surface of your eye.
MACUGEN is generally well tolerated. In clinical studies, the vast majority of
patients continued their injections of MACUGEN every 6 weeks for 2 years,
and over 75,000 people have now received MACUGEN. If you have specific
questions about the injection procedure, ask your treating eye doctor.
Learn more about TREATMENT RESULTS WITH MACUGEN
To listen to the full prescribing information regarding MACUGEN, please click on the link entitled "Important Safety Information" on the menu bar located on the left of the screen.
