In the latest episode of The Retina TL;DR with Dr. Weng, host Christina Y. Weng, MD, MBA, FASRS, talks with Dr. Eichenbaum about the cell and gene therapy pipeline ahead, what sustains a career in retina, and why lifting others up is just what you do.
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The Retina TL;DR host Christina Y. Weng, MD, MBA, FASRS, recently turned the tables — appearing as a guest on Eichenbaum Acorns, hosted by David A. Eichenbaum, MD, FASRS. Check out Weng's appearance on the episode here.
When asked to share the most important principle behind his professional success, Eichenbaum offered a driving analogy: "All the successful retina specialists I know only have one gear, which is drive. It's like sixth gear. They are always going."
Eichenbaum credits his fellowship training—including Jeffrey Heier, MD, at Ophthalmic Consultants of Boston, along with Jay Duker, MD, and Elias Reichel, MD, at Tufts New England Eye Center—as the spark for his passion for drug development. He described the community around clinical trials, including pharmaceutical and scientific partners, as one of the most rewarding parts of his career, noting he still collaborates with many of those same mentors nearly 20 years later.
Looking ahead, Eichenbaum expressed excitement about cell therapy, including the phase 2 Genentech OpRegen Lineage trial for geographic atrophy, which he sees as holding potential to restore vision. He also cited anticipation around upcoming data readouts from gene therapy programs—including Adverum Biotechnologies, 4DMT, and Regenxbio—and tyrosine kinase inhibitor programs from EyePoint Pharmaceuticals and Ocular Therapeutix. "The best is always yet to come," he said.
Eichenbaum spoke candidly about the role mentorship has played in his own trajectory. A graduate of public school through medical school, he credited a residency mentor at the University of South Florida with advocating for him to secure his fellowship. That experience drives his commitment to supporting junior colleagues and underrepresented specialists: "Just because you're not from an Ivy League college doesn't mean you're not going to be an incredibly hardworking and productive and patient-centric clinician and clinical scientist."
When asked what keeps him engaged across clinical, research, industry, and mentorship work, Eichenbaum said variety is the antidote: "It's a strategy to never get bored." He attends 6 to 9 retina meetings annually and described his connection to the broader retina community—across specialties and industry—as a key source of professional energy.
Eichenbaum closed by explaining the name of his podcast, Eichenbaum Acorns. His surname is a Yiddish word meaning "acorn tree," a name carried by his grandfather's family from Eastern Europe. "You plant little acorns, and they grow into these tremendous oaks," he said—a nod both to his family lineage and to the idea that great things grow from small beginnings.
