Anti-VEGF therapy works by blocking a protein in your body known as Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF). In DME, VEGF is responsible for weakening blood vessels, which ultimately start to leak as a result of its action. An anti-VEGF is something that stops VEGF from working and can effectively slow the progression of your DME.Anti-VEGF therapy is given as an injection into the eye. Before giving you the injection, the doctor or nurse will use some anesthetic to numb your eye. The injection itself only takes a few seconds. You may feel a little pressure, and occasionally there may be some discomfort during and afterwards. As with all medicines, there are risks associated with the use of anti-VEGFs. Risks include an increase of pressure inside the eye, the gel-like substance inside the eye pulling away from the retina, moving spots in vision and a clouding of the lens (cataract). Less common and more serious risks include retinal detachment and infection/inflammation inside the eye. For a full list of adverse events, you can consult the Product Monograph (PM) of the relevant anti-VEGF treatment. If you experience any symptoms you’re concerned about, you should speak to your doctor or nurse immediately. Understand where you are and what you need to doUse our checklists to prepare for appointmentsSee what most DME patients want to know aboutAn easy-to-understand guide to the medical terms