Fuchs' Dystrophy trials enroll when patients can reach the site.

Leapcure pairs advocacy, precision digital, and physician outreach to put qualified FECD patients in front of sites they can actually get to.

Talk to our Fuchs' recruitment teamSee how it works →
1,400+
Patients pre-screened
on a completed Phase 3 FECD program
47%
Closer median patient-to-site distance (72.6 miles)
versus the global average
44%
Screen-fail rate, reduced from 61%
by refining the pre-screener
51
Ophthalmologists and corneal surgeons educated
on the study

Understanding Fuchs' Dystrophy as a Clinical Trial Indication

Fuchs' endothelial corneal dystrophy is a progressive loss of corneal endothelial cells that leads to corneal edema and vision loss. It is the most frequent indication for corneal transplantation in the US, accounting for about one-third of corneal transplants performed annually, with estimated prevalence around 4 to 7 percent of adults. Surgical-intervention trials include Descemetorhexis, or Descemet Stripping Only (DSO), which removes central diseased endothelium so healthy peripheral cells can migrate in. DSO is a keratoplasty alternative for select central-guttae patients, with slower visual recovery than DMEK but fewer complications, alongside DMEK and endothelial keratoplasty.

FECD recruitment is hard. It is a hard surgical indication, often with a placebo arm and high patient hesitancy, and patients are frequently vision-impaired and cannot drive, so travel to a site is a real barrier. Eligibility also requires confirming the FECD diagnosis and reviewing prior intraocular surgery history, which drives screen-fails before patients reach a site.

Leapcure recruits FECD patients through the model that solves these problems. On a completed Phase 3 FECD program across the US and Canada, Leapcure pre-screened 1,400+ patients, enrolled the cohort, cut the median patient-to-site distance to 72.6 miles (47% closer than the global average), and reduced the screen-fail rate from 61% to 44%, by combining advocacy, precision digital, physician outreach, and hyper-local site matching. (Epidemiology sources: Journal of the Foundations of Ophthalmology; Ophthalmology Management; NCBI PMC12295143.)

The Challenge

FECD trials are hard to enroll for reasons that compound: a hard surgical indication with a placebo arm and high hesitancy, vision-impaired patients who cannot drive, complex eligibility that drives screen-fails, and a qualified population that list buys never reach.

A hard surgical indication with a placebo arm and high hesitancy

FECD surgical-intervention trials often carry a placebo arm and meet high patient hesitancy, since patients are weighing a surgical decision about their vision. This is not an easy-to-enroll indication.

Leapcure enrolled the cohort on a completed Phase 3 FECD surgical-intervention program (10+ patients enrolled), not just easy-to-enroll conditions.

Vision-impaired patients cannot drive, so travel is a barrier

FECD patients are frequently vision-impaired and cannot drive, so the distance to a trial site is a real barrier to enrollment and retention. A patient who cannot reach the site cannot participate.

Median patient-to-site distance cut to 72.6 miles, 47% closer than the global average, via hyper-local targeting.

Complex eligibility drives screen-fails

Eligibility requires confirming the FECD diagnosis and reviewing prior intraocular surgery history, so a large share of interested patients screen-fail before they reach a site.

Screen-fail rate reduced from 61% to 44% by refining the pre-screener around the top did-not-qualify reasons (FECD diagnosis confirmation, prior intraocular surgery history).

Reaching enough qualified FECD patients takes combined channels, not list buys

A qualified FECD population is dispersed and surfaces only when advocacy, precision digital, and physician outreach work together. List buys do not reach enough qualified candidates.

1,400+ patients pre-screened and 3M+ digital impressions (channel mix Google 65.8%, Facebook 26.3%, Bing), plus 51 ophthalmologists and corneal surgeons educated (concentrated in OR, KS, OH, and CA).

How Leapcure Runs FECD Recruitment for Your Trial

Every Fuchs' dystrophy study is different. Leapcure deploys advocacy, precision digital, and physician outreach mapped to your protocol, your sites, your geographies, and your timeline.

1

Reach FECD patients where they are, near sites they can get to

We reach Fuchs' dystrophy patients through advocacy communities, precision digital, and physician outreach, targeted hyper-locally to the sites patients can actually reach, which matters because many FECD patients are vision-impaired and cannot drive.

2

Pre-screen and refine continuously

We pre-screen every patient and refine the pre-screener continuously around the top did-not-qualify reasons, including FECD diagnosis confirmation and prior intraocular surgery history, so sites receive qualified patients rather than referrals that screen-fail.

3

Partner closely with sites to drive conversion

We partner closely with sites through 3-way calls, weekly patient reviews, and priority-site shifts that drive conversion and save coordinator time, so the patients who reach your sites move toward enrollment.

A completed Phase 3 Fuchs' Dystrophy program across the US and Canada

Challenge Context

Indication

Fuchs' Dystrophy, Phase 3 surgical-intervention program.

Geography

US and Canada.

Engagement

7-month engagement.

Challenge

A hard surgical indication with a placebo arm, high patient hesitancy, vision-impaired patients who cannot drive, and complex eligibility.

Results & Metrics

Enrollment

10+ patients enrolled on a Phase 3 surgical-intervention program.

Top-of-funnel

1,400+ patients pre-screened; 3M+ digital impressions (channel mix: Google 65.8%, Facebook 26.3%, Bing).

Screening quality

Screen-fail rate reduced from 61% to 44% by refining the pre-screener around the top did-not-qualify reasons (FECD diagnosis confirmation, prior intraocular surgery history).

Travel burden solved

Median patient-to-site distance cut to 72.6 miles, 47% closer than the global average, via hyper-local targeting, critical for vision-impaired patients unable to drive.

Physician outreach

51 ophthalmologists and corneal surgeons educated on the study, concentrated in OR, KS, OH, and CA.

Advocacy reach

15+ advocacy partnerships; 48 campaigns across Facebook groups, Reddit (r/dryeyes, r/CataractSurgery), TikTok, Prevent Blindness, Fuchs' Friends, and Foundation Fighting Blindness.

Site partnership

3-way calls, weekly patient reviews, and priority-site shifts drove conversion; 3 sites reached at least 50% enrollment share; 200+ hours of site-coordinator time saved.

Testimonial (anonymized, Site Coordinator)

"Working with Leapcure has been a game changer for our recruitment efforts. The platform is very user-friendly, and the team continues to go above and beyond to make sure we have the right participants and understanding."

Four Capabilities, Built for FECD Recruitment

Leapcure reaches Fuchs' dystrophy patients through advocacy and community reach, precision digital mapped hyper-locally to sites, physician outreach paired with iterative pre-screening, and answer-engine visibility delivered to your trial.

Advocacy and Community Reach

  • •We reach FECD patients through 15+ advocacy partnerships and patient communities, including Facebook groups, Reddit communities, TikTok, and vision-health organizations.
  • •These relationships are co-developed with community partners, not list buys, so research arrives as a trusted option rather than an unsolicited pitch.

Precision Digital, Hyper-Local

  • •Search and social campaigns are mapped to site proximity so vision-impaired patients can reach a site, which is essential when many FECD patients cannot drive.
  • •The channel mix is tuned by performance so spend follows what is delivering qualified patients near your sites.

Physician Outreach and Iterative Pre-Screening

  • •We educate ophthalmologists and corneal surgeons on the study so referrals come from the clinicians FECD patients already see.
  • •We refine the pre-screener around the top did-not-qualify reasons to lift the qualified-patient rate and give coordinators their time back.

AEO / AI-Search Visibility for Your Trial

  • •Patients increasingly ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overview questions like "what Fuchs' dystrophy trials am I eligible for?"
  • •We make the trial's information genuinely retrievable through three honest levers: crawlable server-rendered content; first-party data with sourced stats, a named reviewer, and a last-updated date; and presence in trusted third-party sources such as advocacy organizations and ClinicalTrials.gov. We do not promise visibility through schema or markup.

Built on the vision-health communities patients trust

Leapcure's partnerships are active and co-developed, not list buys. We name only confirmed partners here, with brand-approved logos to follow.

Prevent Blindness

National vision-health organization with broad patient education reach

Fuchs' Friends

Highly engaged FECD-specific patient community

Foundation Fighting Blindness

Vision-loss patient organization with national connections

FECD and corneal-surgery patient communities

Facebook groups and Reddit communities such as r/dryeyes and r/CataractSurgery

Ophthalmology and corneal-surgery KOLs

Clinical voices who lend trust to research outreach

Living with Fuchs' dystrophy? A clinical trial may be an option to explore.

If you are living with Fuchs' dystrophy, a clinical trial may be an option to explore alongside your care, never instead of it. There is no pressure here. We know travel can be hard when your vision is affected, so we help with the logistics and with finding a site you can actually reach, and we provide step-by-step support along the way.

See if a Fuchs' trial may be right for you
Leapcure kangaroo mascot

Leapcure has completed a Phase 3 Fuchs' dystrophy program across the US and Canada, pre-screening 1,400+ patients, cutting the screen-fail rate from 61% to 44%, bringing the median patient-to-site distance 47% closer, educating 51 physicians, and saving 200+ coordinator hours. We deliver on hard surgical indications, and we can adapt this model to your protocol.

Talk to our Fuchs' recruitment team