It was an ASCRS/ARVO Extravaganza — for me anyways.
These two shows were so close in proximity — one in Los Angeles, the other in Salt Lake City, respectively — that I was able to make a great excuse to go skiing in between, at Snowbird.
Snowbird was one of the last remaining mountains open in the US for skiing, and there was a blizzard on April 30 leading to some gnarly whiteout ski conditions.
Second thought: am I now tacking on shows to the adventure sports? Because actually, I skied two days at Snowbird, hit up Eyecelerator ahead of Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO), skied another day then attended ARVO proper.
READ MORE: Couldn’t make it to ARVO 2025? No worries—we’ve got the whole show covered here.
In any case, I enjoy making events out of all major happenings of life. Every day is to be celebrated in some way — turned into its own show of sorts — and enjoyed thoroughly.
But lest we forget the real showtime, let’s glide first right into ASCRS because so much was popping off!
READ MORE: See what everyone was talking about at ASCRS 2025.
1. Team Interventional Glaucoma
So many top-notch docs were involved in our Interventional Glaucoma Coffee Talks shoot ahead of ASCRS, that I’m going to have to pile all these celeb docs onto one team. Morgan Michelletti won’t mind, as he’s a real team player (and later joined Team Barbie at the ASCRS Party for a Purpose, raising money for charity).
READ MORE: A New Interventional Glaucoma Consensus Protocol Has Arrived
But truly, we had a stunning cast in an authentic setting, relaxed, catching up as friends and truly advancing the common-sense message of interventional glaucoma as what should become standard in glaucoma treatment. The team included: Drs. Morgan Michelletti, Christine Funke, Manjool Shah, Paul Singh, Deborah Ristvedt and Savak Teymoorian (not pictured).
2. Dr. Terrence P. O’Brien (center) and 3. Dr. Francis Mah (right)
In the early 2000s, both Terry and Francis were key sources on some of my most comprehensive infection control stories. A lot has happened since then, of course, most especially personally. Francis has gone on to become ASCRS President, also a CAKE magazine Advisory Board member and moved from Pittsburgh to La Jolla; Terry moved from Maryland down to Florida to become a professor of ophthalmology at Bascom Palmer. And I moved from Washington D.C. to Singapore and Vietnam to start Media MICE. Go figure.
4. The Funky 10
The big reveal from Media MICE was the creation of MICE Wear (funky jackets) for the first-ever group of industry executives. As a group, they were deemed to have in a high-level manner contributed to eye care in a stunning fashion. Hence, beyond the select KOLs we have made funky jackets for, we made this ASCRS seasonal release for industry. Check out the awardees and the colors, including: Erin Powers, Jim Mazzo, Andrew Stewart, Magda Michna, PhD, Kate Hunt, Dana Popescu, Erik Bror Bonn, Kerim Ekonomi (on behalf of his dad Gene), Kuntal Joshi, Adrienne Graves.
Meet the Final Five of the Funky 10—read the full story on LinkedIn.
Meanwhile, Jim Mazzo and Laurie Ferguson have offered to host the Funky 10 at a high level party alongside AAO in Orlando, so we will be dressed to the nines to come out for that, naturally!
5. Monty Montoya
All the congrats to Monday for the recent majority share acquisition of his baby, Aurion Biotech, which he founded, by Alcon. Aurion Biotech will still operate independently to advance “clinical-stage allogeneic cell therapy asset, AURN001, into Phase 3 for corneal edema secondary to corneal endothelial disease during the second half of 2025,” according to Alcon.
READ MORE: Alcon Acquires Majority Stake in Aurion Biotech, Moves Into Regenerative Medicine
6. Dr. Filomena Ribeiro
Running home to my AirBnb in partial conference attire — as I sometimes do to cram in exercise (with my jacket being stuffed into my bag) — I passed Filomena outside her hotel. She is as energetic as ever, and we both are very excited about the upcoming ESCRS summer meeting in Copenhagen. The last time it was there was in 2016, and I remember marveling at the vast waterways — just a stunning part of the Earth. Do come along if you can make it — ESCRS never disappoints.
7. Rahim K. Hirji
Rahim, of Versea Ophthalmics, was busy advancing the Biovance 3L Ocular decellularized, dehydrated amniotic membrane. The technique uses no sutures or glue for pterygium surgery. The technique includes a more comfortable post-op period for patients, a faster return to patient lifestyle, shortened surgical time, lower surgical cost and avoidance of infection.
It sounds like the technique is really starting to pick up steam this year. Congrats, Rahim!
8. Eugene VanArsdale
Gino, of Keeler, as he is known, is one of Team Media MICE’s favorite industry people— for his charisma, sincerity and veteran-level friendship, and it has nothing to do with the fact that he’s a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles, current Super Bowl champs. Nope, not at all. Go Birds!
9. Edson Chaccur
We first met Edson at the PAAO in Buenos Aires a couple years ago, and the Johnson & Johnson Vision LATAM team often comes up to the U.S. shows, which is a great sign of America’s solidarity. We’ll be seeing Edson’s team soon enough, during our travels to the PAAO in Colombia this month, as well as the BRASCRS in Brazil. Indeed, Media MICE is now further engaged in Latin America, which isn’t easy from our base in Asia, but we are committed to the cause of advancing eye care globally — along with J&J, of course.
10. Shervin Korangy
I had some time to catch up with Shervin, CEO of BVI, to hear more about their successful $1 billion capital raise in coordination with TPG, a leading global alternative asset management firm. It sounds like as a result, new product launch galore will be coming through the pipeline. Congrats BVI, and looking forward to witnessing the rollout.
11. Prof. Damien Gatinel
I was very excited to hear that my friend Damien was giving the Charles D. Kelman, MD, Innovator’s Lecture at ASCRS 2025. Given my entry into ophthalmology 22 years ago was through the ASCRS, the name Charles Kelman has been a giant in my mind for decades. And now, a good friend, Damien, was giving his named lecture. It was almost a bizzaro-world kind of revelation to me. I feel so grateful for friends who are advancing eye care at the highest of levels worldwide, and any way I can support them, I will. Cheers to you, Damien.
12. Dr. George Beiko
George also is a supporter of CAKE magazine from way back, when it was associated more with a dessert than ophthalmology. What I mean is, in those early days, a lot of our field just hadn’t heard about the magazine, but George saw the spark of potential. It might be because he naturally gravitates to the more colorful things in life, always wearing his trademark purple jacket. Or maybe it’s because he’s an Oxford man, and just smart. But he was wise to see the potential years before others caught on. Thanks, George, for the memories and years of support!
13. Nick Smith
Nick, of Sight Sciences, did a nice thing. First, he found me lost in his hotel, looking for the RxSight party. As we navigated upstairs, the lift opened, and I saw a glorious vending machine stocked with all sorts of traveller necessities. I remarked to Nick it was cool his hotel had that. The next morning, I received a WhatsApp from Nick asking if I needed anything from the machine. “Advil!” I replied. That morning on the show floor, Nick found me to pass the Advil over. What a saint!
READ MORE: Adjust Your Expectations: RxSight Brings the Party and Precision to ASCRS 2025
14. Team Alcon
Alcon launched five major new products at ASCRS 2025. But I was more happy to see some old friends relocate here. Dayna Izzo came over from OCULUS. And Yasir Iqbal from SpyGlass Pharma. David Endicott even was spotted making the rounds at an evening Alcon event. It was a heady time for the company, and we clearly were all happy to be a part of it.
READ MORE: Alcon Rolls Out UNITY VCS and CS Systems for Cataract and Vitreoretinal Surgery
15. Lauren Fiscale
We were thrilled to get the invite to the very VIP and impressive RxSight rooftop party at ASCRS 2025. A fantastic band was playing, and cool LA vibes abounded. Here, I’m with friend Lauren Fiscale. Congrats to the LAL/LAL+ for all the innovation it has brought to the world of IOLs and cataract surgery! It really is the talk of the town.
Meanwhile, here’s a little teaser video team Media MICE did showcasing this great event. Everything was just popping off.
16. Onur Birsen
Onur Birsen shared a very heartwarming point about his company Glacial Multimedia at none other than the ASCRS Party for a Purpose. He mentioned that it is now employee-owned, such that stakeholders are up-and-down employees of the company. I thought, what a wonderful gift co-founders Onur and Michael Dobkowski have created and given to the world of ophthalmology. I’ll be seeing Onur soon in London this month for our annual hangout there. What a guy!
17. Martha Best
Martha, of Rayner, and I also met up at the ASCRS Party for a Purpose, and you know, Martha has this fabulous style that really must be the envy of the industry. It’s not funky jackets, but it is iconic Martha. Not Stewart. Best.
18. Joe Gilliam and 19. Roxana Davidoff
Joe Gilliam, president of Glaukos, wife Roxana Davidoff, and I kicked off a tailgate of ASCRS 2025 that is the finest in memory. It’s simple for us: friends, drinks and a good meal. Meanwhile, Roxana isn’t part of this industry, but then again, she is. She certainly inspires me to new heights, with her entrepreneurship and zest for life, and am so thankful she and Joe made the time to really solidify our friendship for years to come.
20. Dr. Burkhard Dick
You know, if the ESCRS President Elect dresses like this, I am in good hands with ESCRS. I have to say, despite all the outfits on stage at ASCRS Party for a Purpose, my good friend Burkhard’s neon vest and air (blown) guitar made his costume the most memorable to me. That’s what happens when Europeans make costumes: attention to detail. Seriously, the most exquisite costumed celebration I was ever at was at Carnival, alongside a Swiss ophthalmic congress in Lucerne. I had never seen such fine costumes in all my life. Anyways, kudos to Burkhard for his contribution to Party for a Purpose… the purpose here being to show up for life every day with enthusiasm!
WATCH NOW: See what went down at the ASCRS Party for a Purpose—funk, flair, and full-on dancing.
21. Alisa Brill
I really appreciate Alisa’s support of us over the years. She is always just delightful. And this time, she also was handing out Tracey Technologies sunnies. I didn’t mention this but I will now. I am terrible at keeping up with quality sunglasses. They always get scratched. So I promised myself that in sunglasses world, I’m not allowed to have nice things. And so, when Alisa handed me this free pair of sunglasses, immediately they became my de facto pair. I will wear those for many years, Alisa. Thank you!
22. Bernie Illakis
After hours in the exhibition hall, someone was running after me. Usually, I get nervous about that because I do tend to stay overtime, greeting every possible friend I can. But security can be viscous about that in some locales. However, it was none other than Bernie, CEO of CorneaGen, that had run up to say hello. He was such a gentleman, and we had just begun supporting CorneaGen at Media MICE, so it was truly an honor to make this ad hoc meet happen. Also, Bernie was kind enough to invite me the next day for an official booth visit. Sorry Bernie, I never was able to make it back. But truly, CorneaGen is in good hands post-Monty Montoya. So glad you’re there leading the charge!
23. Dr. Arun Gulani
Arun is yet another stunning ophthalmologist — in personality, in fashion (he also has his own fashion line) and in surgical innovation. He also was one of the first true supporters of Media MICE years ago, seeing something in us that at that time was unseen. Though we were visible, we weren’t truly seen by many. And all that has changed. But we remember our initial supporters, and they remember too. Thank you, Arun.
24. Miles Harper
Miles is an unassuming guy, and sometimes that’s just the best quality. I don’t wear that well, but I’m glad I have friends that do. Miles also is key to the industry, as he continues to advance Beyeonics, the heads-up surgical display that really is next-level. Just impressive.
25. Ernst Serfontein
I’ve known Ernst for many years, and I’m glad to see Cassini continuing to take hold of the industry in new ways. Cassini currently is focused on “gold standard diagnostics for cataract surgery with the Cassini Ambient as the front-end preoperative device identifying all relevant corneal measurements and registration data,” according to the company.
26. David Lampariello
Lenz seems to be headed for success in short order. And it was great to meet David at ASCRS 2025 to hear more about it. The LNZ100 is now being reviewed by the US FDA to treat presbyopia. It would be the “first and only aceclidine-based eye drop to improve near vision in people with presbyopia,” according to the company.
27. Team Vance Thompson Vision
In the halls of ASCRS 2025, I had a wonderful encounter with Vance Thompson. He mentioned he had grown his company from just a few to 500 people. I asked him how he did it. He said one word: “Love.” Then he got pulled into another encounter. That was enough for me, as I told him when I saw him again at Eyecelerator, that we believe in the same thing. And what a vibe that is. So I also got the great chance to meet one of his staff, Nicholas Bruns, OD as well. What a great guy helping to advance collaborative care. All the best!
28. Dr. Thomas Kohnen (right) and 29. Brad Fundingsland (left)
These are some wonderful individuals to hang out with alongside ASCRS. Read all about our breakfast odyssey here
30. Dr. Bobby Ang (Dr. Robert Ang)
Bobby and I always have to get our customary show picture together somewhere in the world, and we did so again at ASCRS 2025. Nothing more, nothing less, than the cream of the cream, arm in arm, again and again. Ha!
31. Dr. Rahil Chaudhary
If you take nothing more away from this roundup today, remember this name: Rahil Chaudhary. Rahil has taken ophthalmic India by storm, with one of the largest social followings for something ophthalmic throughout the entire country. We’re talking millions of followers depending on the social channel. That’s nothing to sniff at in a highly specialized field. Rahil, clearly, is doing something right. We’re looking forward to further collabs. Great seeing you in LA!
32. Dr. Oliver Findl
As my brother from another Austrian mother (but not Arnold Schwazenneger’s mother, as we’d look more pumped up if so), Oliver Findl and I got to work pumping iron at the original Gold’s Gym in Venice. Arnold did do his thing there once upon a time, and we were happy to lift weights even in his shadow. We also had a great dinner with friends in Palos Verdes. You might recall one of the Funky 10, Kuntal Joshi here, and his brother Aaarchan, and wife Rita.
Read the full flex-worthy story right here.
33. Team Eyecelerator
I’m going to go ahead and call them Team Eyecelerator, as what they brought to our AAO x Media MICE-partnered Media Wall was nothing short of teamwork. Thanks for kicking off our media day with stunning words of wisdom. Pic includes: AAO CEO Dr. Stephen D. McLeod, Gil Kliman and Dr. Allen Ho.
See what surprised me at this year’s Eyecelerator here.
34. Dr. Lejla Vajzovic
I was so tickled to be accompanied by Lejla later that day at our Media Wall. She was wearing a stunning pink jacket, and it only slightly enhanced the charisma she already brought to our afternoon Media Wall panel alongside the Eyecelerator.
35. Tom Dunlap
Ever since he left HOYA many years ago as CEO, Tom Dunlap and I have remained good friends. Tom has gotten himself into all kinds of new things since, including now as CEO of TECLens, which is introducing a Quantitative Corneal Cross-linking (qCXL) technology.
36. Terry Kim
It was great to see Terry, who has experience as a DJ, share some of that with my colleague Robert Anderson, also a former DJ at a major Bangkok club. Let’s just say, it was a vibe. Terry, now also Chief Medical Officer at Alcon, shared quite a bit on Alcon updates at our Eyecelerator Media Wall. We’re looking forward to sharing that episode with our viewers on MICE TV. Stay tuned.
37. Christian Kirchhübel of OCULUS
Christian, the managing director of OCULUS, colleague Rob Anderson and myself headed out for a road trip to Park City, from Salt Lake City. Over there, we found a great steakhouse where we proceeded to gobble down some exquisite steak. In fact, we didn’t wait to take this picture. So you see only what’s left of the meal here. What a fantastic evening. Thanks, Christian. Hope you enjoyed the whitewater rafting in Colorado.
38. Olga Prenat
It was wonderful to meet up with Olga at ARVO 2025. She always is on the cutting edge of myopia control thought, as we saw her present at Eyecelerator first before our ARVO meet. Many thanks also to EssilorLuxotica for supporting our digital show daily at ARVO, our first cooperation in the Americas. Getting the word out on eye care is a must, and we are fortunate to do that now from East to West with our global partners.
39. Pat Lydon
Pat and I, who share a love of collegiate rowing once upon a time, introduced me to a new company he’s supporting, Evoq Technologies, making waves in electrophysiology. From what I recall, the device was super portable, and continues to innovate in this growing space.
40. Ben Fox
Ben, who is affected by blindness, was an instrumental part of the Blind Canvas Project, supported by Ora. The project at the Ora ARVO booth was commissioned to “shine a light on the human experience of blindness.” AI was used to help generate colorful artwork that portrayed the experience of blindness. In the case of Ben’s AI-supported artwork, Walk Through Fear, Ben wrote: “When you walk through fear, you are the only thing that is left.” He noted that the quote actually is from the movie Dune, which influenced his decision to undergo a high-risk eye procedure.
41. Dr. Mark Bullimore
This maverick of the optometry space held up a cheeky image here. It’s a reminder that one must take care when employing photography at ARVO, a conference steeped in research that sometimes needs additional protections. This photograph was just fine to take, fortunately.
42. Annie Tremblay
After a recent delightful Zoom call, it was so good to see Annie in person at ARVO 2025. She’s just one of those people that you are so happy to meet in person. She’s representing AbbVie, which continues to make significant strides with Ozurdex in the retina space.
43. Kazuo Tsubota
Kazuo was a wonderful interviewee more than two decades ago when I worked with ASCRS, and I’ll always remember the nifty dry eye glasses he wore. From what I recall, they had a wet sponge that continuously moistened the eyes, as he suffered from dry eye. Now, decades later, Kazoo has his own company —Tsubo Lab — that reaches far beyond that with new innovations for dry eye, myopia and presbyopia. And we had such a fun picture here. What a great group. Look them up!
44. Roland Mattern
Roland, of eSight, was so great to meet at ARVO 2025. We had tried connecting our teams at the COS show last year in Canada, but no luck. Sometimes missed connections nonetheless are for a good reason. You must just find that moment in time that works to meet. We did so here, and there was a minute of magnetism, so it was just right. Looking forward to continuing the dialogue!
45. Riz Siddiqi
Speaking of missed connections, I missed meeting Riz for years. We were LinkedIn buddies, and finally it happened at ARVO 2025. What a chance occurrence! Riz is now working with ANI Pharmaceuticals, which recently acquired Alimera Sciences. She also introduced me to X. Glad to meet!
And yes, it’s another plane-ride-written-roundup, as I am about to land in Germany for the DOC, the nation’s most important national congress with a significant commercial element.
See you there, m’eye friends!
