SUPPORT OUR WORK
The science is ready.
The patients are waiting.
Your support can close the gap.
Corneal disease blinds millions of people each year, particularly in communities where specialist eye care remains scarce.. Yet some of the most devastating corneal infections are still treated with medicines developed more than half a century ago, and physicians still lack many of the tools needed to diagnose disease early, predict who will do poorly, and determine whether new treatments actually work.
The Shekhawat Lab and IMPACT Consortium are working to change that. We are building the scientific infrastructure to develop and test new diagnostics, AI tools, and treatments, and to bring those advances to the communities where corneal blindness is most prevalent.
Federal research funding provides an essential foundation for this work. Philanthropy makes it possible to move faster to pursue promising ideas before traditional funding is available, build the infrastructure needed for ambitious clinical studies, and move discoveries from early evidence toward technologies and treatments that can reach patients.
JONATHAN’S STORY
Jonathan came to Wilmer blind in both eyes and in severe pain from a fungal infection. Advanced ASOCT imaging revealed that one eye could be saved with medication, while the other eye required urgent corneal transplantation. Both treatments succeeded, restoring excellent vision in both eyes. His case reflects a question we face repeatedly. Which patients need surgery, and which can safely be treated with medication? Our research aims to turn crucial decisions like these from expert judgments into evidence physicians everywhere can use.
WHAT YOUR SUPPORT MAKES POSSIBLE
Your support builds on an NIH-funded research program, partnerships with major eye care institutions, and technologies already deployed to more than 100,000 patients.
$10,000
Brings community-based eye screening and referral to approximately 2,000 patients.
$50,000
Supports a year of clinical research at an IMPACT partner institution, advancing new approaches to diagnosing and treating corneal disease.
$250,000
Accelerates a promising diagnostic or treatment from early research toward clinical testing.
$1,000,000+
Major philanthropic partnerships can establish or accelerate ambitious programs in diagnostics, therapeutics, artificial intelligence, and clinical research, creating the sustained scientific infrastructure needed to move discoveries toward patients.
To discuss a philanthropic partnership or learn more about the work, I welcome direct correspondence.