Dr. Wang will perform middle Tennessee’s second new artificial cornea Boston-K surgery to restore sight in a man who has been blind for 3 years

Wang Vision 3D Cataract and LASIK Center, Nashville, Tennessee

(Nashville, TN, USA, May 22, 2009) Ming Wang, MD, PhD, Clinical Professor of Ophthalmology at the University of Tennessee, and Director of Wang Vision 3D Cataract and LASIK Center is planning to perform middle Tennessee’s second ever new artificial cornea Boston K implantation to restore sight in a man who has been blind since 2006.

Dr. Wang performed many of the world’s first eye reconstructive surgeries including the world’s first laser artificial cornea implantation, the laser Intacs on a keratoconus graft and the laser corneal transplantation after cataract surgery. This new surgery planned will be yet another remarkable opportunity to witness the unfolding of a story of a patient with severe visual impairment as he regains his sight. Mr. John Swain, a kind gentleman from Hickman, Kentucky, will be coming to internationally-renowned Wang Vision 3D Cataract and LASIK Center on Wednesday May 27 at 1 pm to see if Dr. Wang can perform a new artificial cornea Boston K procedure to restore his sight after years of legal blindness. If performed, this rare eye surgery Boston K will be the only second of such surgery ever performed in middle Tennessee.

At this time, the future of John’s sight is uncertain, but there is hope. This is indeed not only a precious chance for John to possibly see again, but also an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for all of us to witness, first hand and live, and before it happens, the potentially miraculous process of sight restoration using modern technological advancements. We will all watch John’s journey from darkness to sight before our very eyes!

13 years ago in April 1996, John Swain suffered a tragic accident when liquid aluminum exploded in his face at work, resulting in severe alkaline burns to his face and eyes, leaving him blind. His vision is limited to below legal blindness in his right eye and hand motion in the left eye. Since that horrible day, John has undergone many surgeries including limbal stem cell transplants and corneal transplants, all of which have failed. Due to multiple failures of all prior surgeries, he is at high risk of rejection of further corneal transplantation, and is therefore no longer a candidate for traditional surgery.

John was told in 2006 that he would never be able to see again.

But John never gave up hope. He has spent the last few years searching the world for a surgeon with the expertise that may possibly give him a chance to see again. After receiving numerous recommendations from doctors who have examined him, John has decided to travel to Nashville, TN and Wang Vision 3D Cataract and LASIK Center. He will be seen by Dr. Wang, for the first time, on Wednesday May 27, 2009 at 1 pm.

Dr. Wang will determine if there is a chance to restore John’s sight with one of the most innovative types of new artificial corneal designs available today, the Boston Keratoprosthesis (Boston K). The Boston K artificial cornea is relatively the size of a hard contact lens that sits in the center of a donor cornea. This device is used to restore sight in patients like John Swain, for whom all conventional surgeries have failed. Dr. Wang performed the first Boston K in middle TN in October 2008 on a man who had lost sight in his left eye for 36 years.

Dr. Wang is a Harvard and MIT graduate (MD, magna cum laude) and is one of the few eye surgeons in the world who holds a doctorate degree in laser physics. He published a paper in the world renowned journal Nature, holds several US patents for his innovation of new biotechnology to restore sight, published 5 major textbooks in the field, and performed the world’s first laser-assisted artificial cornea implantation. Dr. Wang founded a charity, the Wang Foundation for Sight Restoration, which has helped patients from over 40 states and 55 countries worldwide in various ways, with all sight restoration surgeries performed free of charge.

This is indeed a chance of a lifetime, for John to possibly see again! And this is also indeed an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for all of us to witness, first hand and live and before it happens, a potentially miraculous process, of bringing someone out of darkness, into light! We do not know the outcome at this time, but, we remain confidently hopeful.

For more information about artificial cornea Boston-K surgery, please click here or e-mail drwang@wangvisioninstitute.com, or contact Wang Vision 3D Cataract and LASIK Center, 1801 West End Ave, Ste 1150, Nashville, TN, 37203, 615-321-8881, www.wangvisioninstitute.com, www.wangfoundation.com.