Retina UK

Join Research Development Manager, Kate Arkell as she speaks to our latest research grantees about their projects. Dr Matteo Rizzi Chloe Brotherton Gabriel Velichkova Professor Jacqueline van der Spuy Professor Jane Sowden

The latest e-Newsletter from Retina UK. If you would prefer to receive this content by email, please subscribe via our website: Join our mailing list - Retina UK

Join the fun and support a great cause. Our Weekly Lottery has now arrived. This podcast aims to answer any questions you may have and encourage you to take part. RetinaUK.org.uk/lottery

This webinar was broadcast live on Thursday 21 March 2024. It is available in video format on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/oF5DP6XUsXk Have you ever been tempted to take part in the TCS London Marathon? In 2022 the TCS London Marathon raised £58.3 million for charity so it’s a vital source of income. Our Events and Community Fundraising Manager, James Clarke, talks to three of our 2024 runners about: - their motivation for taking part - their connection to Retina UK - the different ways in which they’ve been fundraising - what they are most looking forward to (or apprehensive about) for the big day. Find out about our upcoming webinars on our website: ⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/webinars⁠.

This is the audio edition of the Retina UK Newsletter, Look Forward - Spring 2024 (Issue 182). You can download a copy in PDF and Word format on the Retina UK website: ⁠⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/resources⁠⁠. The short piano music at the beginning of this recording is a tribute to Norman Pampel FCA for his much acclaimed role as honorary treasurer of the British Retinitis Pigmentosa Society for many years during the mid 1970s. It was composed by Mark Pampel, his son. Contents in this edition are as follows: Track 2: So much to look forward to in 2024 (Tina Garvey) Track 3: What’s on in 2024 Track 4: Feel the Friday Vibes Track 5: An expert view on cataract surgery Track 6: Cataract surgery - a personal perspective Track 7: Join #TeamRetinaUK in 2024 Track 8: Research news round-up Track 9: New local peer support group in Tyne & Wear Track 10: Leading our best lives Track 11: Spotlight on Martin Hills Track 12: Thank you Track 13: New pathway aims to transform eye care support Track 14: Get to know our Fundraising team Track 15: Support us to help more people on their sight loss journey

The latest e-Newsletter from Retina UK. If you would prefer to receive this content by email, please subscribe via our website: ⁠⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/get-involved/mailing-list/⁠⁠.

Cataracts occur fairly frequently and at a relatively early age within the Retina UK community of people with inherited retinal conditions. A question that comes up over and over again is whether or not to have cataract surgery. People seem to come across conflicting advice from medical professionals, and there is understandably a lot of concern around whether the potential benefits outweigh any possible risks to remaining vision. Kate Arkell, Research Development Manager at Retina UK, is joined on this podcast by two experts who can discuss cataract surgery with us. Mr Kanmin Xue is an Honorary Consultant Ophthalmologist and Vitreoretinal Surgeon at Oxford Eye Hospital, and also leads the Retinal Disease & Repair Group at Oxford University. Mr Simon Keightley is a Retina UK Trustee and recently retired ophthalmic surgeon, who has performed a vast number of cataract surgeries.

This webinar was broadcast live on Thursday 25 January 2024. It is available in video format on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/3kTVF8SoA0w. With more treatments coming through the development pipeline, we are all hopeful that more of those living with inherited sight loss will be offered the opportunity to take part in clinical trials in the years to come. But what’s it like to be a participant? What do you need to consider before you commit? And how does it feel as a parent to allow your child to take part? Join Research Development Manager Kate Arkell as she talks to a young clinical trial participant and his mum about their experiences. They will also talk about other types of research participation opportunities, and explain how treatments get from the laboratory to the clinic. Find out about our upcoming webinars on our website: RetinaUK.org.uk/webinars.

The latest e-Newsletter from Retina UK. If you would prefer to receive this content by email, please subscribe via our website: ⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/get-involved/mailing-list/⁠. Please consider donating to Retina UK through a monthly or quarterly direct debit if you can. Regular donations provide a reliable source of income to help us to plan effectively for the future. Visit ⁠⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/get-involved/donate/⁠⁠ to sign up, or, if you prefer, call us on 01280 821334.

In this last episode of Blindingly Chatty, Laura Tyler is interviewed by Paula McGrath about her internship at Retina UK, her journey before it, and all that she’s gained from her time in the organisation. Laura worked as a Communications Intern at Retina UK from February - November 2023.

In this month’s edition of Blindingly Chatty, Laura Tyler and Mark Pampel follow on from the subject of musical instruments and discuss composition, improvisation and performance. Mark tells us how he got into music, along with giving some tips for those who are thinking of taking music to that next level.

This webinar was broadcast live on Thursday 7 December 2023. It is available in video format on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/x7ZyVxmla7I Nikolas is a bioinformatician, who uses computer power to tackle medical research challenges. He will be talking about his project to develop AI that will identify the genetic cause of an inherited retinal conditions from scans, without the need for a genetic test, and other ways that AI can help us with eye disease. Dr Nikolas Pontikos is a group leader at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology and Moorfields Eye Hospital who is working with his team at the Pontikos Lab and the Moorfields Clinical AI Lab on creating Eye2Gene, an AI software that can help doctors to better diagnose patients with inherited retinal disease. His background is in computer science, bioinformatics and machine learning.

This is the audio edition of the Retina UK Newsletter, Look Forward - Winter 2023 (Issue 181). You can download a copy in PDF and Word format on the Retina UK website: ⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/resources⁠. Contents in this edition are as follows: Track 2: Reflecting back and looking forward (Tina Garvey) Track 3: Harnessing the power of AI Track 4: Searching for the cause of Charles Bonnet Syndrome Track 5: Thank you Track 6: 'Everything happens for a reason' Track 7: Therapy development updates Track 8: Festive fundraising Track 9: Nurturing young scientists Track 10: ADVERT - Sight and Sound Technology Track 11: Double your donation with The Big Give 2023 Track 12: The difference we made in 2022 Track 13: Follow the yellow brick road for a fantastic evening Track 14: Spotlight on Dr Katerina Tavoulari Track 15: Spotlight on Daniel Summers Track 16: Support us to help more people on their sight loss journey

A video version of this Webinar is available on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/0s1C3kXnXWc Join us for a brief overview of the Government’s Access to Work scheme, learn how it could support you at work, and hear the experiences of a number of people with inherited sight loss who receive an Access to Work grant. We will be joined by Josh Freehan, Head of Internships at TPT. Josh has worked closely with Access to Work on their Get Set Progress Internship programme, so can provide some valuable insights. We’ll also be talking to Emily Lamb, a young person using the scheme for the first time and Simon Lakin and Bhavini Makwana, who have both used the scheme in different ways throughout their careers on a full-time and part-time basis.

The latest e-Newsletter from Retina UK. If you would prefer to receive this content by email, please subscribe via our website: https://retinauk.org.uk/get-involved/mailing-list/. Please consider donating to Retina UK through a monthly or quarterly direct debit if you can. Regular donations provide a reliable source of income to help us to plan effectively for the future. Visit ⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/get-involved/donate/⁠ to sign up, or, if you prefer, call us on 01280 821334.

The Blind Poet, Dave Steele, talks candidly about his diagnosis, his poetry and his optimistic mindset. https://www.theblindpoet.net/

This podcast covers the most important professionals who work with the sight loss community, along with their abbreviations and what they do to improve people’s lives.

We were joined for this popular ‘Ask the expert’ session by Samantha de Silva, a consultant ophthalmic surgeon at Oxford Universities Hospital Trust. She answered a wide variety of questions relating to inherited retinal dystrophies. If you would prefer to watch a video of the Webinar, it is available on our YouTube Channel: https://youtu.be/f_1UEV7M8jQ

The latest e-Newsletter from Retina UK. Please consider donating to Retina UK through a monthly or quarterly direct debit if you can. Regular donations provide a reliable source of income to help us to plan effectively for the future. Visit ⁠RetinaUK.org.uk/get-involved/donate/⁠ to sign up, or, if you prefer, call us on 01280 821334.

The difference we made in 2022