First English patient to receive artificial cornea details ‘debilitating’ sight struggle

A 91-year-old man has made history by becoming the first patient in England to receive an artificial cornea.

Cecil Farley faced a year-long wait for sight-saving surgery after a human cornea transplant failed, but his surgeon offered him the chance to skip the queue by using an artificial one.

Medics hope that one day the new artificial corneas could reduce the need for human cornea donations.

The new product replaces the inner part of the cornea.

It has been likened to a contact lens and is surgically attached to the eye by a single stitch and put in place with a gas bubble.

Mr Farley detailed the “debilitating” struggle he faced before the surgery, when he had no vision in his right eye.