“I was driving on the road and suddenly I couldn’t see,” he says. “I had a very bad headache, and I was very upset.”

After heading straight to hospital, Benny was diagnosed with vision loss associated with his diabetes and quickly put on a course of injections.

“I was told that they do testing of treatments at Cerulea Clinical Trials, and asked if I would like to contribute,” he says. “I was happy to do that.”

Since then, he has been coming into Cerulea at regular intervals as part of a clinical trial.

A fully owned, not-for-profit subsidiary of CERA, Cerulea continues to grow its footprint as a hub for ophthalmic clinical trials in Melbourne.

Study Coordinator at Cerulea Clinical Trials Lin Lin says people like Benny who participate in research make an

invaluable contribution.

“Participants help researchers better understand the condition and how different patients respond to treatment,” says Lin.

“Their involvement allows new therapies to be tested for safety and effectiveness, helping improve and develop better

treatments for future patients.”

Benny recommends that more people

should participate in research. “Everyone is very friendly and nice – it makes me happy to be a part of,” he says.

This story was originally published in Creating the future in sight: Annual Review 2025.