New pill could replace eye injections for Diabetes-Related vision loss
NCT ID NCT04187443
First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This early-stage trial tests an oral drug called MS-553 in 45 people with diabetic macular edema, a condition that causes vision loss in people with diabetes. Participants take the drug daily for 8 weeks. The main goal is to check safety, but researchers will also measure changes in retinal swelling and vision. If safe, larger studies could follow.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- MS-553 (oral drug)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could point toward a new oral treatment option for diabetic macular edema, potentially reducing the need for eye injections.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early Phase 1 trial with only 45 people, focused on safety. It is too small and early to know if the drug will work or be safe long-term.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1
The first testing in people. Mainly checks safety and dose, usually in a small group.
- Participants
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About 45 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2020
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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A company
The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Diagnosis of diabetes mellitus (type 1 or type 2) according to ADA or WHO diabetic diagnosis criteria * Subject has the ability to follow the study instructions and is likely to complete all required study procedures and visits; * All males and females must consent to pregnancy prevention during the study and qualified measures of birth control. All females of childbearing potential must consent to a pregnancy test before entering the study. * Presence of central involved macular edema associated with diabetic retinopathy, i.e. diabetic macular edema (DME), as assessed by spectral domain optical coherence tomography (sd-OCT) of the central retina subfield thickness (CRT) at the Screening Visit (Centration must be confirmed by Investigators with signatures); * Best Corrected Visual Acuity (BCVA) score ≥ 34 letters (approximately 20/200 to 20/20 Snellen equivalent or better) using the Early Treatment Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) visual acuity protocol, and assessed at the Screening Visit Visual acuity (VA); * Confirmation by the investigator that laser photocoagulation and anti-VEGF treatments are either declined by the patients or not needed and can be withheld for at least 3 months after the Screening Visit; * Ocular media and pupil dilation adequate to permit good quality retinal imaging as assessed at Screening Visit. Exclusion Criteria: * Subjects with unstable metabolic or blood pressure control * Subject with emaciation or obesity at Screening Visit: body mass index (BMI) \<18.5kg/m2 or \>28kg/m2 * Current use or likely need for medications know to be toxic to the lens, retina or optic nerve, including Deferoxamine, Chloroquine / hydroxychloroquine (Plaquenil), Tamoxifen, Phenothiazines and Ethambutol - * History of myocardial infarction or other cardiac event requiring hospitalization (unstable angina pectoris, etc.), cerebrovascular accident, transient ischemic attack, treatment for acute congestive heart failure or any arrhythmia within 4-months prior to Screening Visit; * Any situation that may in the opinion of the investigator preclude the safe administration of the study medication, adherence to the scheduled study visits, safe participation in the study or affect the results of the study as assessed at Screening Visit;
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
3 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Shanghai General Hospital
RECRUITINGShanghai, 200080, China
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The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University
RECRUITINGChangsha, Hunan, China
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West China Hospital of Sichuan University
RECRUITINGChengdu, Sichuan, China
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can bevacizumab eye injections hold up over years of Real-World use?
- Could a work health check catch diabetic eye damage before it steals sight?
- The 20-Minute squeeze: how eye injections push pressure up
- Eye scans as a window to the body: study probes retinal imaging across diseases
- Could years of eye injections weigh down the upper eyelid?
- Eye implant takes aim at diabetic macular edema