Tony co-founded EyeBio with David Guyer, M.D., in August 2021. Today he holds the title of Chief Scientific Officer after previously serving as the company’s Director and Chair of the Advisory Board. He is best known for his co-discovery of the central role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in two leading causes of blindness: neovascular age-related macular degeneration (nAMD) and diabetic retinopathy. Conducted at Harvard in the 1990s, this research led to Tony’s shared receipt of the Antonio Champalimaud Award, the highest honor in vision science, and to his election to the National Academy of Medicine.
At Eyetech, where he was a Co-Founder, and later at Genentech (now a wholly owned member of The Roche Group), Tony helped lead the development of the first anti-VEGF drugs for the treatment of nAMD, diabetic macular edema (DME), diabetic retinopathy, retinal vein occlusion, and myopic choroidal neovascularization. With the introduction of anti-VEGF drugs, legal blindness from nAMD and DME has been reduced by half around the world.
At Genentech, Tony helped lead the development of the first long-acting delivery technology for a biologic drug (port delivery system) and the first bispecific antibody for nAMD and DME (faricimab). Over the course of his career, Tony has helped develop 20 medicines across 30 indications, resulting in seven U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Breakthrough Designations and 25 FDA approvals. Tony received his M.D. from the University of Chicago, his ophthalmology training at the University of Michigan, and his fellowship training at Harvard University. He completed his research training in vascular biology with Judah Folkman, M.D., at Boston Children’s Hospital.
