Background/aims Aflibercept is an approved therapy for neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and diabetic macular oedema (DME). In vitro and in vivo studies did not detect toxicity to the retinal pigment epithelium cells using the approved cancer protein, ziv-aflibercept. Our purpose is to determine if ziv-aflibercept can be used in AMD and DME without ocular toxicity, to test the stability of ziv-aflibercept, and to do a cost analysis.

Methods Prospectively, consecutive patients with AMD or DME and poor vision underwent one intravitreal injection of 0.05 mL of fresh filtered ziv-aflibercept (1.25 mg). Monitoring of best-corrected visual acuity, intraocular inflammation, cataract progression, and retinal structure by spectral domain optical coherence tomography was done at 1 day and 1 week after injection. Ziv-aflibercept activity over 4 weeks was measured by capturing vascular endothelial growth factor by ELISA.

Results There were no signs of retinal toxicity, intraocular inflammation or change in lens status in four eyes with AMD and two eyes with DME. Visual acuity improved (p=0.05) and central foveal thickness decreased in all patients (p=0.05). Ziv-aflibercept had no loss of anti-VEGF activity when kept at 4°C in polycarbonate syringes over 4 weeks. Similar to bevacizumab, compounded ziv-aflibercept would yield a tremendous saving compared with aflibercept or ranibizumab.

Conclusions Off-label use of ziv-aflibercept improves visual acuity without ocular toxicity and may offer a cheaper alternative to the same molecule aflibercept.

Trial registration number NCT02173873.