Dr. Calvin Roberts, MD - Program Manager, Transplantation of Human Eye Allografts (THEA), Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) - Transplanting Whole Human Eyes To Restore Vision In Patients Who Are Blind Or Visually Impaired

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Dr. Calvin Roberts, M.D. is Program Manager at the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) where manages for the Transplantation of Human Eye Allografts ( THEA - https://arpa-h.gov/research-and-funding/programs/thea ) program, which aims to transplant whole human eyes to restore vision in patients who are blind or visually impaired by reconnecting the nerves, muscles and blood vessels of whole donor eyes to the brain. Dr. Roberts joined ARPA-H in September 2023 from Lighthouse Guild International, where is the president and chief executive officer. Lighthouse Guild is a not-for-profit organization that provides programs and services to people who are blind or visually impaired. Previously, Dr. Roberts was the chief medical officer for the global eye care company Bausch + Lomb. For the past 40 years, Roberts has also served as a clinical professor of ophthalmology at Weill Cornell Medical Center. As a practicing ophthalmologist from 1982 to 2008, he performed more than 10,000 cataract surgeries, as well as 5,000 refractive and other corneal surgeries. He is credited with developing surgical therapies, over-the-counter products for vision care, prescription ocular therapeutics and innovative treatment regimens. He also holds patents on the wide-field specular microscope and has done extensive research on ophthalmic non-steroidals and post-operative cystoid macular edema. Dr. Roberts also hosts the podcast series “On Tech and Vision” ( https://lighthouseguild.org/technology/on-tech-and-vision-podcast/ ) – where innovators discuss how rapidly evolving assistive technology creates equity among those who are visually impaired. Dr. Roberts received his medical degree from Columbia University, completed an internship and ophthalmology residency at New York Presbyterian Hospital, and conducted cornea fellowships at Massachusetts Eye and Infirmary and the Schepens Eye Institute.

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