Dr. Joan Miller is the David Glendenning Cogan Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School (HMS), Chief of Ophthalmology at Massachusetts Eye and Ear and Massachusetts General Hospital, and Ophthalmologist-in-Chief at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
A graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), she earned her MD from HMS and completed her ophthalmology residency and vitreoretinal fellowship at Mass Eye and Ear. Her clinical research interests focus on retinal disorders, including age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Dr. Miller and her colleagues at Mass Eye and Ear/HMS pioneered the development of verteporfin photodynamic therapy (Visudyne®), the first pharmacologic therapy for AMD. The group also identified the key role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in ocular neovascularization, leading to the development of anti-VEGF therapies now administered to millions of people with sight-threatening retinal diseases annually around the world. Her current studies focus on the pathogenesis of AMD, including genomics, metabolomics, imaging, and functional measures; strategies for early intervention in AMD; and neuroprotective therapies for retinal diseases.
An internationally recognized expert in the field of retina, Dr. Miller has published over 280 original articles and more than 95 book chapters, reviews, and editorials. A member of the National Academy of Medicine, she was the first female physician to achieve the rank of Professor of Ophthalmology at Harvard Medical School, and the first woman to chair the Department of Ophthalmology. Dr. Miller is also the first woman appointed as Chief of Ophthalmology at both Mass Eye and Ear and Massachusetts General Hospital.