Shaffer-Hetherington-Hoskins Lecture at the 2025 Glaucoma 360 meeting

M. Roy Wilson, a distinguished professor of ophthalmology and President Emeritus at Wayne State University, presented the Shaffer-Hetherington-Hoskins Lecture at the Glaucoma 360 meeting held in San Francisco, California.

This lecture was entitled, "Rethinking Race as a Risk Factor for Glaucoma: What Really Matters?" He began by explaining that, while the human genome project completed in 2003 provided significant information, defining race remains a complex challenge, as it is ultimately a social construct with little biological significance. Wilson argued that race is often overemphasized as a risk factor for glaucoma, when in reality, it does not directly cause the condition.

Instead, he suggested that there are other more proximal factors that play a greater role, such as corneal thickness and social determinants of health. Wilson highlighted the growing evidence that it is not race itself, but rather the conditions in which people live and the distribution of resources, that have a bigger impact on glaucoma development and progression.

The professor commended the 2025 Glaucoma 360 meeting for bringing together professionals from diverse fields, including industry, academia, and venture capital. He noted that such interdisciplinary collaboration is rare in the glaucoma space, yet crucial for driving progress. Wilson emphasized that by working across disciplines, the participants would be better positioned to identify and address the key risk factors for glaucoma, beyond just race.

In summary, Wilson challenged the overreliance on race as a risk factor for glaucoma, urging the audience to instead focus on other physiological and social determinants that may be more directly linked to the condition. He praised the meeting's unique approach of fostering collaboration across various stakeholders, which he believed would be essential for advancing glaucoma care and research in the years to come.