The untold dangers of elective eye surgery will be in focus this week at the Silicon Beach Film Festival. The groundbreaking documentary "Broken Eyes" tells the story of thousands of patients permanently scarred by LASIK procedures.

TAMPA, Fla., Sept. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The untold dangers of elective eye surgery will be in focus this week at the Silicon Beach Film Festival. The groundbreaking documentary "Broken Eyes" tells the story of thousands of patients permanently scarred by LASIK procedures, the so-called "safest elective surgery on the market." Vision Advocacy, Inc., a Florida-based education and patient support group, hopes the film and new proposed LASIK warnings from the FDA will help more patients understand the potential risks before undergoing elective eye surgery.

"Broken Eyes" debuted in April at the 43rd Annual Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival. Director Dana Conroy, herself a victim of surgery complications, teamed with Executive Producer Dr. Cynthia MacKay, a board-certified ophthalmologist who now warns patients about the dangers and unnecessary risk of laser eye surgery.

Conroy started making the film to document the negative impact LASIK had on her vision. What began as an attempt to hang onto her lifelong passion, became a documentary into the multibillion dollar industry and the discovery of thousands of patients permanently scarred by LASIK. The 78-minute film describes how laser eye surgery is approved by the FDA, but causes chronic dry eyes, pain, and visual distortions for many patients. A former FDA officer who once approved the procedure now advocates against it and wrote a book detailing the complications many patients experience after having the surgery.

The FDA proposed new patient warnings in 2022, and eye surgeons, manufacturers and industry groups submitted public comments that opposed implementing them. Vision Advocacy founder Paula Cofer has fought for years to get the FDA patient guidance implemented. A recent New York Times article noted that the FDA official in charge, Dr. Jeffrey E. Shuren, is married to a lawyer for the eye surgery industry, Allison W. Shuren, and some of Ms. Shuren's clients submitted and supported public comments in opposition to the new patient warnings. Dr. Shuren announced his retirement from the FDA in July.

About the film festival: Silicon Beach, located on the west side of Los Angeles, is home to Hulu, Snap, Headspace, and other tech firms. The Silicon Beach Film Festival was created by Jon Gursha and Peter Green. "Broken Eyes" will be shown Wednesday, September 11, at 2 pm in TCL Chinese 6 Theaters.

Vision Advocacy's mission is to educate patients about the dangers of laser eye surgery so they can make informed decisions, to advocate for patient protections, and to assist victims suffering because of surgery. Patients and medical experts featured in the film can be made available for press interviews.

Media Contact

Paula Cofer, Vision Advocacy, Inc., 1 727-238-7211, info@visionadvocacy.org, https://visionadvocacy.org/

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SOURCE Vision Advocacy, Inc.