Jeffrey Soohoo, MD: I think events like this are important because they show what else is out there. They bring in kind of a larger picture to someone’s personal chronic disease. I think as a glaucoma patient you might even feel isolated, especially if you have advanced disease. You might not have a lot of friends that have glaucoma. So bringing together people that have different kinds of glaucoma, people that have had different degrees of visual impairment from glaucoma, and then connecting them with researchers and educators to share ideas and share information.

Colleen Silveira: The information in which the doctors are relaying all different topics of glaucoma has been a fantastic spread of ideas, thoughts, technology, concerns. Having patient stories that also were on the panel today was great, but I think it just encompassed everything that any glaucoma patient has ever thought or wondered or had concern about, and so I would absolutely come to this every year.

Rebecca Vilendrer: Well, I think it’s important to learn as much as you can about glaucoma as a patient. And this forum gives you the opportunity to learn from ophthalmologists, to learn from other patients, to learn from the drug representatives, from the companies. And so it’s a forum where you can learn more and I think that’s very important.

A. Sydney Williams, MD: A patient can really get an idea of the steps that they can take to further their interactions with their doctor, to understand when a second opinion might be necessary, to understand when it’s important to see a glaucoma subspecialist, and also to interact with other patients in a kind of informal format in a way where you can hear stories of other people that have followed the same path that you’re following.

David Epstein: Any way that GRF can help educate patients is a phenomenal thing. I’m amazed at the turnout and I think it’s a great event and it’s super helpful, especially for someone like me.

Marilyn Rogers: Hearing everybody speak, it seems like people should really get a specialist as soon as they know they have glaucoma.

Yvonne Ou, MD: I think it’s really important to also raise awareness about glaucoma and highlight the needs that patients have, for patients to hear about what’s going on in the research arena and new technologies, but also for us to be able to know what are patients concerned about.

Hannah Eckstein: When you’re here in person and you see the passion behind it, it really puts you in a place where you realize, oh, something is actually happening. Someone actually cares about me and everyone else who has this disease.

Shan Lin, MD: You get an overview of what’s the latest in glaucoma management and taking care of yourself, and it lets you be really an active participant in your own care.

End Transcript.