Hunter Cherwek, MD, on Orbis International | Plus Frank Brodie, MD, on LensOne & the GOLDEN GATE Trial

Guests: Hunter Cherwek, MD – Vice President, Clinical Services & Technologies, Orbis International Frank Brodie, MD, MBA – Assistant Professor of Ophthalmology, UCSF; Co-Founder, Long Bridge MedicalShow SummaryHunter Cherwek, MD, Vice President of Clinical Services & Technologies at Orbis International, joins John and Scott to discuss how Orbis has evolved from a single Flying Eye Hospital into a global force spanning AI-powered diagnostics, distance learning, drug distribution, and children's eye care.Frank Brodie, MD, MBA, co-inventor of LensOne, then joins to explain what the prosthetic capsular bag solves, how it works, and where it's headed — including the upcoming GOLDEN GATE pivotal trial launching this fall.Hosts: John Kitchens, MD, Scott KrzywonosTopics CoveredHunter Cherwek, MD, on Orbis InternationalOrbis founded 1982; the Flying Eye Hospital — a US-accredited hospital aboard an MD-10 aircraft — now represents ~15% of Orbis activityCyberSight: the world's largest freely available ophthalmic distance learning platform; recently hosted a live lecture watched by 127 countries simultaneously; originated as a pediatric mentorship program by Eugene Helveston, MDTrachoma eradication: Orbis distributes 200–250 million doses of azithromycin annually in Ethiopia; Hunter projects eradication within 10 yearsAI and diabetic retinopathy: RAIDERS trial in Rwanda (conducted entirely during COVID, fully remote) showed a 40% improvement in referral rates to medical retina; B-PRODUCTIVE study in Bangladesh improved retina clinic procedural volume by 248%Oculomics: Orbis is now using retinal AI biomarkers to detect systemic disease, positioning the eye as a window into neurovascular health450+ volunteers from 40+ countries; the associate program allows residents to observe (not operate) and build global health foundations early in trainingHow to get involved: orbis.org — volunteer tab at the top of the site; particular need for ROP, inherited retinal disease, and pediatric retina specialistsFrank Brodie, MD, MBA, on LensOneThe problem: secondary IOL fixation (Yamane, four-point fixation, glued IOL) has a 14% re-operation rate per a large IRIS Registry study; no FDA-approved solution currently exists beyond ACIOL, which fewer than 10% of surgeons useLensOne: a three-point fixated prosthetic capsular bag made by Long Bridge Medical; accommodates virtually any IOL type including toric and multifocal; injected through standard cannula incisions in roughly three minutesFirst-in-human trial: 15 patients in Sydney, Australia; 100% successful implantation; no conjunctival erosion or IOL dislocation; published in Ophthalmology (AAO journal) with surgical videos available onlineGOLDEN GATE trial: US pivotal study; ~12 sites; 110–130 patients; launching fall 2026; market entry targeted for late 2028–early 2029Training: bench-top only (model eyes and ex vivo porcine); no live animal training required; most steps are intuitive for retina surgeons already familiar with pars plana approachesMore information and surgical animations: longbridgemedical.comKey TakeawaysOrbis has evolved far beyond the Flying Eye Hospital — it is now a global AI, telemedicine, and drug distribution organization reaching the world's most underserved patients, and retina specialists can plug in at any career stage.LensOne addresses a real and underappreciated problem: secondary IOL surgery is technically demanding, legally risky, financially penalized, and currently without an FDA-approved solution beyond ACIOL.The GOLDEN GATE trial launches this fall; surgeons interested in participating should visit longbridgemedical.com.SponsorsWatch the Purple Chair series at Vabysmo-HCP.com.Learn more about Unity VCS at UnityVCS.com.Credits Production & Marketing: Laura Brown | Head of Production: Liz Hogan🎧 Listen at RetinUp.com | Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube