Macular degeneration is an incurable eye disease and is the leading cause of blindness for those aged 55 and older in the United States, affecting more than 10 million Americans.

Macular degeneration is caused by the deterioration of the central portion of the retina, the inside back layer of the eye that records the images we see and sends them via the optic nerve from the eye to the brain. The retina's central portion, known as the macula, is responsible for focusing central vision in the eye and it controls our ability to read, drive a car, recognize faces or colors, and see objects in fine detail.

As people age their chances for developing eye diseases increase dramatically. In January 1997, Dr. Carl Kupfer, then the Director of the National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, stated publicly that macular degeneration will soon take on aspects of an epidemic.

Unfortunately, the specific factors that cause macular degeneration are not conclusively known and research into this little-understood disease is limited by insufficient funding. Recent studies indicate that by the year 2025, the population of people over the age of 65 in the United States will be six times higher than in 1990. Since many people diagnosed with macular degeneration are over age 55, the number of cases of macular degeneration in the U.S. will increase significantly as baby boomers age.