Press ReleaseMay 13, 2025
Ophthalmology Visionary Joan W. Miller, MD, Elected to Prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Media Contact
Ryan Jaslow
Program Director, External Communications - Research, Mass General Brigham
617-573-4385 | rjaslow@mgb.org
Joan W. Miller, MD, chair of Ophthalmology at Mass Eye and Ear and Mass General Brigham, is a world-renowned retina expert who helped discover and pioneer new treatments for age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Last month, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences announced nearly 250 new members to its prestigious honorary society, with Joan W. Miller, MD, chair of Ophthalmology at Mass Eye and Ear, Mass General Brigham, and Harvard Medical School, among the list of honorees whose work has had a transformative impact on the United States.
Miller will be honored during a ceremony that takes place in October in Cambridge, Mass.
Founded in 1780, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences brings together exceptional scholars, leaders, artists, and innovators to advance the public good. Its inaugural members include Benjamin Franklin and George Washington.
Additional visionaries include such as Alexander Hamilton, Martin Luther King, Jr., Albert Einstein, and Madeleine Albright. A full list of 2025 honorees can be found here, and include renowned researchers, academics and public figures across many sectors including entertainment, industry, journalism and public policy.
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Drs. Joan W. Miller and Anthony Adamis in the laboratory at Mass Eye and Ear (left). Years later, they were honored with the 2014 Antonio Champalimaud Award Vision Award in Lisbon, Portugal, for the development of anti-VEGF drugs (right). -
Joan W. Miller MD, with Inês Laíns, MD, PhD, a mentee who eventually joined Mass Eye and Ear's faculty as a vitreoretinal surgeon and scientist. -
Joan W. Miller, MD, and Evangelos S. Gragoudas, MD, with the PDT laser used in clinical trials.
Contributions to Ophthalmology
Dr. Miller has made transformative contributions to the field of ophthalmology, particularly in AMD.
AMD is a leading cause of vision loss in the U.S., impacting an estimated 20 million Americans and more than 200 million individuals worldwide.
Miller and colleagues pioneered the development of photodynamic therapy using verteporfin (Visudyne®), the first treatment to slow vision loss in patients with advanced AMD.
The group also identified the key role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the growth of abnormal blood vessels within the eye that contribute to numerous blinding eye conditions such as AMD and diabetic retinopathy.
This discovery led to the development of anti-VEGF therapies, which are now administered to millions of adults and children with sight-threatening retinal diseases annually around the world.
In recognition of this groundbreaking work, Miller and her team received the prestigious 2014 António Champalimaud Vision Award, one of the highest distinctions in ophthalmology and visual science.
Dr. Miller's research continues to be active, investigating the root biological causes of AMD to find new strategies for earlier intervention as well as new neuroprotective therapies for retinal diseases.
Leadership and Impact
Miller joined the faculty of Mass Eye and Ear in 1991, eventually becoming the first woman physician to serve as chair of the departments of Ophthalmology at Mass Eye and Ear and Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School. Throughout her career, she has been the recipient of numerous awards that were often historic firsts.
With her election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Miller’s visionary leadership and extraordinary impact on science, medicine, and society are getting well-deserved national recognition.
“It is an incredible honor to be recognized by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and one that fills me with a great deal of gratitude for the many patients, physicians, scientists, and medical, research and hospital staff members who I have collaborated with throughout my career,” said Miller.
“One thing that inspires me when I look at past and current honorees, is the focused determination to tackle society’s greatest challenges.
"What motivates me every single day is finding better treatments and cures for eye diseases, and inspiring my colleagues and future generations of researchers and scientists to do the same.”
Read this story on Mass General Brigham’s research blog, Bench Press.About Mass Eye and Ear
Massachusetts Eye and Ear, founded in 1824, is an international center for treatment and research and a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School. A member of Mass General Brigham, Mass Eye and Ear specializes in ophthalmology (eye care) and otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ear, nose and throat care). Mass Eye and Ear clinicians provide care ranging from the routine to the very complex. Also home to the world's largest community of hearing and vision researchers, Mass Eye and Ear scientists are driven by a mission to discover the basic biology underlying conditions affecting the eyes, ears, nose, throat, head and neck and to develop new treatments and cures. In the 2024–2025 “Best Hospitals Survey,” U.S. News & World Report ranked Mass Eye and Ear #4 in the nation for eye care and #6 for ear, nose and throat care. For more information about life-changing care and research at Mass Eye and Ear, visit our blog, Focus, and follow us on Instagram, X and Facebook.
