UNC Ophthalmology is pleased to recognize Associate Professor and Residency Program Director Alice Zhang, MD, as the Choroideremia Research Foundation’s 6th Annual Randy Wheelock Research Award recipient. The yearly Wheelock Research Award honors exceptional emerging clinical and basic ophthalmic researchers who are initiating or furthering their investigative focus on choroideremia (CHM) and related vision loss issues.
Dr. Zhang is an established physician scientist, educator and leader in academic ophthalmology. Her scholarly portfolio is centered around surgical and medical management of retinal diseases such as retinal detachment, diabetic retinopathy, and macular degeneration, as well as medical education. With $50K in 2025 Wheelock Research Award funding over one year, Dr. Zhang aims to identify and validate patient-reported outcome measures that better capture meaningful changes in visual function for individuals with CHM. Because traditional measures like visual acuity often fail to reflect subtle functional improvements in this condition, developing reliable patient-reported outcomes will be essential for future clinical trials and treatment development.
CHM is a rare, inherited form of blindness that afflicts approximately 6000 people in the US. Visual field restriction and night blindness are two prevailing symptoms that begin in early childhood. Over a lifetime, the condition progresses to total loss of vision. Men with CHM are most severely affected, while women may have no symptoms or can experience a wide range of visual impairment. There are currently no approved treatments for CHM.
Dr. Zhang noted: “Our team is very grateful to the Choroideremia Research Foundation for this grant. This award provides crucial support for advancing our understanding of how patients experience vision loss in choroideremia. By validating patient-reported outcomes, we hope to lay the groundwork for more sensitive and meaningful measures of success in future therapeutic trials.”
Learn more about choroideremia at the Choroideremia Research Foundation website.