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About

Professor Robyn Guymer AM

CERA Deputy Director, Head of Macular Research

Professor Robyn Guymer AM leads CERA’s macular research, with a focus on investigating age-related macular degeneration.

Professor Robyn Guymer AM

CERA Deputy Director, Head of Macular Research

MBBS, PhD, FRANZCO, FAHMS

Professor Robyn Guymer AM is a Deputy Director of CERA, the Head of Macular Research at CERA, and Professor of Ophthalmology at The University of Melbourne. She is also a senior retinal specialist at The Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital.

She is a clinician scientist who leads a team of researchers primarily investigating age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Professor Guymer has investigated genetic and environmental risk factors for AMD, predictors of response to treatments for late AMD, as well as being a principal investigator in many industry-sponsored trials. She is on several pharmaceutical advisory boards and is part of the Mactel consortium, the Beckman/Ryan AMD initiative (USA) and the International Classification of Atrophy (CAM) group.

She is currently investigating new strategies for treating early stages of AMD and is working to identify novel imaging and functional biomarkers and surrogate endpoints to improve the feasibility of conducting early intervention trials. In 2020, Professor Guymer spent her sabbatical as the first visiting professor to La Hoffman Roche in Switzerland. She is a member of the Macular Society and an inaugural fellow of the Australian Academy of Health and Medical Sciences.

Professor Guymer was named a Member in the General Division (AM) in the 2018 Queen’s Birthday Honours List – recognised for her significant service to medicine in the field of ophthalmology, particularly age-related macular degeneration as a clinician, academic and researcher.

She was also awarded the NHMRC’s 2016 Elizabeth Blackburn Fellowship for the top-ranked female research fellowship in clinical medicine.

Key research questions
  • How do we predict, who amongst the many people with the early stages of AMD, is at high-risk of progression?
  • Having identified early imaging signs of cell loss, can we validate them as a robust biomarker to facilitate their widespread use?
  • Can we slow progression of AMD using subthreshold laser interventions?
  • What is the cause of reticular pseudodrusen, a high-risk phenotype of AMD?
  • How do we optimise treatment outcomes in wet AMD with the least need for repeat treatment?
  • How do we optimise the dissemination of our current understanding of AMD to community eye care professionals?
  • How can we optimise the testing of retinal function in eyes with cell loss in AMD (geographic atrophy)?
  • How do we develop a community network of eye care professional and develop new ways of delivering eye care, especially as it relates to chronic eye disease?
  • Can we establish a registry of early disease in the community to facilitate early intervention trials?

Current projects

Selected publications

My team

Key collaborators

Funding and support

Current projects

Project RPD: A pathway to translation: uncovering novel causes, genetic associations, and potential intervention strategies for AMD

This project aims to uncover the underlying aetiology of reticular pseudodrusen (RPD), which we hypothesize are genetically determined and once identified, will provide critical information for developing new interventions and biomarkers to improve outcomes for those with high-risk AMD.

This project is in collaboration with the research groups of Professors Erica Fletcher, Melanie Bahlo and Alice Pebay.

Laser intervention in Early stages of Age-related macular Degeneration (LEAD) study

The LEAD study is a 36-month, multicentre, randomised, sham-controlled trial of nanosecond laser used to slow progression of intermediate stage AMD. It reported the primary outcome in 2018. In participants with iAMD without signs of late AMD, no significant difference in the overall progression rate to late AMD between those receiving laser and sham treatment were observed.

However, subthreshold nanosecond laser treatment may have a role in slowing progression for those without coexistent RPD and may be inappropriate in those with RPD, warranting caution when considering treatment in clinical phenotypes with RPD. (ACTRN12612000704897) and (NCT01790802). We continue to explore the use of the nanosecond laser in AMD.

Microperimetry in Atrophy Progression Study (MAPS)

This project aims to determine the best methods of assessing how well the retina functions in and around lesions which are showing signs of cell death. This will help us better evaluate promising new treatments in atrophic AMD.

Noctural hypoxia in AMD

This project aims to determine if there are any links between nocturnal hypoxia (usually secondary to sleep apnoea) and AMD.

Multi-spectral imaging study in AMD

This project aims to determine unique imaging signatures in people with various clinical appearances of AMD to help determine risk of progression. The technique will allow better studying the disease pathophysiology and monitoring progression clinically.

This research is conducted in collaboration with Associate Professor Peter van Wijngaarden and Dr Xavier Hadoux.

Using Artificial intelligence (AI) to analyse OCT images in AMD

With several different international academic groups and industry, we work with leaders in AI research in AMD to find ways to predict progression of AMD, to identify high risk characteristics and to develop an automatic algorithm to allow high speed detection of these markers.

Macular telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel) consortium

We remain part of the international MacTel consortium, which aims develop the first treatment for MacTel. We are a clinical site in the phase 3 ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) trial of macular telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel). NCT03316300

We also maintain the MacTel natural history registry.

HONU: A multicentre, prospective, observational study of the progression of intermediate age-related macular degeneration

Professor Guymer is global Principal Investigator and site lead for this study that aims to validate novel endpoints for clinical trials in the earlier stages of AMD.

Voyager study

Professor Guymer is global Principal investigator and a site PI for this real-world, non-interventional, prospective, multinational, multicentre study.

It is designed to collect real-world, long-term data to explore long-term effectiveness, safety, clinical insights, treatment patterns, and factors driving the treatment decisions among patients being treated with the Roche ophthalmology product Faricimab for neovascular AMD and diabetic macular edema (DME), as used in routine clinical practice.

Principal Investigator: Cerulea Clinical Trials

Professor Guymer is a PI on several trials currently underway in Cerulea for geographic atrophy.

Community Eyecare professional trial network

We are working to develop a network of community-based eye care professional to be part of a new way of recruiting for trials, especially of early-stage disease.

Preclinical research

This work in preclinical models of disease is performed with our collaborators at the University of Melbourne under the leadership of Professor Erica Fletcher. Our current interest is in the role of inflammation and the immune system in AMD.

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