ORLANDO, Fla., Oct. 17, 2025 – A landmark clinical investigation published today in JAMA Ophthalmology and presented at the Cornea and Eye Banking Forum has found that corneas from donors with diabetes are just as effective for transplantation as those from non-diabetic donors, significantly expanding the potential pool of sight-restoring tissue worldwide.
The Diabetes Endothelial Keratoplasty Study (DEKS) was funded by the National Eye Institute and led by Jonathan Lass, MD, Charles I Thomas Professor of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, and member of the Eversight Board of Directors and Medical Advisory Committee. DEKS investigators tracked more than 1,400 corneal transplants performed by 46 surgeons across 28 U.S. medical centers.
Eversight was one of 13 eye banks that contributed donor tissue and clinical expertise to the study, which found no difference in transplant success rates between recipients of corneas from donors with or without diabetes one year after surgery.
“Evidence from this study has the potential to expand access to sight-restoring surgery for thousands of people around the world,” said Michael Titus, Senior Vice President of Clinical Operations, Eversight. “By confirming that corneas from donors with diabetes are just as viable, we enable broader use for more advanced, selective layer transplantations and more patients will receive the transplants they need to regain their vision.”
Scientific leadership at the Cornea and Eye Banking Forum
In addition to its contributions to DEKS, Eversight researchers supported multiple scientific presentations at the Cornea and Eye Banking Forum, held in conjunction with the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) annual meeting. These include:
- Primary graft failure in preloaded versus surgeon-prepared DSAEK: A clinical and ex-vivo correlation study (Karanpreet Multani, MD, Dean McGee Eye Institute)
- Published in the Journal of Cataract & Refractive Surgery Sept. 9, 2025; presentation at AAO Oct. 20, 2025
- Preliminary outcomes of Bowman layer onlay transplantation for keratoconus using tissue bank pre-prepared grafts (Michael Szkarlat, Eversight)
- Clinical outcomes of processed keratolimbal allograft (KLAL-Pro) for the treatment of limbal stem cell deficiency (Nambi Nallasamy, MD, University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center)
“Research and development are central to Eversight’s mission,” Titus said. “From collaborating on NIH-funded clinical studies to advancing new surgical techniques, we are committed to advancing the science and clinical opportunities so more people can experience the joy of restored vision.”
About Eversight
Eversight is a nonprofit organization with a mission to restore sight and prevent blindness through the healing power of donation, transplantation and research. The Eversight network is responsible for recovering, evaluating and providing human eye tissue for transplantation; supporting research into the causes and cures of blinding eye conditions; promoting donation awareness through public and professional education; and providing humanitarian aid to people around the world in need of corneal transplantation. Operating in Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio and South Korea, Eversight works in collaboration with surgeons, researchers, academic medical centers and eye banks across the United States and abroad. For more information, visit eversightvision.org.
Media Contact
Mackenzie Mohr
Communications Director, Eversight
(517) 204-1413
