Overview

• Brent Chapman, 34, from North Vancouver, lost his sight at 13 after a rare ibuprofen reaction diagnosed as Stevens–Johnson syndrome.
• Dr. Greg Moloney at Mount Saint Joseph Hospital performed the staged procedure this year, first preparing a tooth with a lens and temporarily implanting it in the cheek before placing it in the eye.
• After healing, Chapman achieved roughly 20/40 to 20/30 vision in the treated eye, reports glare managed with sunglasses, and has returned to reading, walking unaided, and playing basketball.
• The tooth‑in‑eye technique, developed in the 1960s, is reserved for severe corneal disease and has been performed in only several hundred patients worldwide.
• Moloney’s team is monitoring long‑term risks such as tooth reabsorption; they estimate about a 50% chance of retaining Chapman’s current vision at 30 years, though studies report high overall success rates.