Cataract surgery has come a long way. For decades, the procedure has been one of the most successful operations in all of medicine, helping millions of people regain sight. Yet despite the remarkable progress in surgical safety and visual clarity, there has always been one element missing: the natural flexibility of the human lens. Traditional intraocular lenses (IOLs), no matter how advanced, are essentially fixed-focus devices. They restore clarity, but not the dynamic ability to change focus from near to far like a young, healthy lens.
This is where JelliSee comes in. An emerging innovation in eye care, JelliSee is an injectable lens concept that aims to replicate the eye’s natural focusing power. Instead of inserting a solid lens into the eye, surgeons would inject a gel-like material that solidifies into a clear, flexible lens capable of changing shape inside the eye. If it works as intended, it could dramatically reshape how cataracts and even age-related presbyopia are treated.
In this article, I’m going to walk you through what JelliSee is, how it works, what makes it different from the lenses we currently use, the stage of research it’s at, and what the future might hold. Along the way, we’ll talk about the potential benefits, the challenges, and the questions patients are already asking about this technology.
Why Current Cataract Lenses Have Limits
When you develop a cataract, the natural crystalline lens becomes cloudy, scattering light and blurring vision. Cataract surgery removes that cloudy lens and replaces it with an artificial one. These artificial lenses are called IOLs, and they’ve been refined over many decades. Today’s IOLs come in different types: monofocal lenses (giving clear distance vision, usually with glasses needed for reading), multifocal and trifocal lenses (designed to give vision at multiple ranges), and extended depth-of-focus lenses that stretch the focus range.
While these lenses are effective, they can’t truly mimic the natural lens’s ability to adjust continuously. A 25-year-old can effortlessly look up from a book to a road sign and refocus instantly. A patient with a cataract lens implant, even with advanced multifocal optics, doesn’t have that same seamless shift. Instead, they rely on clever optical tricks that can come with compromises like halos, glare, or reduced contrast.
This has long been considered the “holy grail” of cataract surgery — finding a way to replace the lens in a way that restores accommodation, the natural focusing ability of the eye.
The Big Idea Behind JelliSee
JelliSee takes a very different approach compared to the lenses in use today. Instead of inserting a solid lens made of acrylic or silicone, the surgeon injects a special gel-like substance into the empty capsular bag — the thin transparent membrane that used to hold the natural lens. Once inside, the gel solidifies into a clear, flexible lens.
The unique part is that this artificial lens is designed to change shape in response to the eye’s own muscles. When the ciliary muscle contracts or relaxes — the same natural mechanism that moves the focus in a young eye — the injected lens surface is meant to shift curvature, altering its optical power. In theory, this could provide a range of vision from distance to near, continuously, just like a healthy natural lens.
What makes JelliSee especially interesting is how it uses tiny haptics, or footplates, to connect the lens with the capsular bag. These act as little levers that translate muscle movement into changes in the lens surface. Even very small movements — fractions of a millimetre — could result in several dioptres of focusing power. That’s enough to read up close, see your phone clearly, and then glance across the room without glasses.
How the Injectable Process Works
Here’s how the concept is designed to be carried out in surgery:
- Cataract removal
The cloudy natural lens is removed, leaving behind the capsular bag. This is the same as in conventional cataract surgery. - Injection of gel
Instead of placing a pre-manufactured IOL, the surgeon injects a clear, biocompatible gel into the bag. The gel spreads out to fill the natural lens space. - Solidification
The gel solidifies inside the eye, becoming a transparent lens with optical properties similar to the natural lens. This could happen through chemical cross-linking or temperature-dependent processes, depending on the final formulation. - Integration with natural eye muscles
Special supporting structures (the haptics) anchor the lens so that when the ciliary muscles contract, the lens surface subtly changes curvature, allowing the patient to focus at different distances.
From the patient’s perspective, the surgery would feel similar to standard cataract surgery. The difference is in what’s implanted. Instead of a rigid piece of plastic, you end up with a custom-shaped lens that has the potential to work in harmony with your eye’s natural focusing system.
Why This Could Be a Game Changer
The potential benefits of JelliSee are striking.
Restoring continuous vision
For the first time, a patient could have an artificial lens that actually adjusts focus. That means smooth transitions from reading to using a computer to driving. This would be a huge step beyond multifocal optics, which essentially split incoming light between different focal points.
Reducing side effects
Because the JelliSee design doesn’t rely on splitting light or diffractive rings, patients may avoid common issues like halos around lights or loss of contrast sensitivity that occur with some multifocal lenses.
Mimicking the natural lens
One of the most attractive features of JelliSee is that it aims to replicate the eye’s natural design rather than work around it. By using the patient’s own eye muscles to adjust focus, it feels like a return to how the eye is meant to function.
Potential for broader applications
Beyond cataracts, this type of injectable accommodating lens could also be used for people with presbyopia — the age-related loss of near vision. Imagine replacing the natural lens before it gets cloudy, restoring accommodation to people in their 40s and 50s who are tired of reading glasses.
Current Stage of Research
So, where are we with JelliSee right now?
The lens is still experimental, undergoing trials to test both its safety and effectiveness. Early animal studies showed promising results, with lenses achieving several dioptres of accommodation and maintaining clear vision over time. Small-scale human trials have begun, with encouraging reports of patients regaining near vision quickly after surgery.
However, it’s still early days. We don’t yet have large clinical trials with hundreds or thousands of patients. Nor do we have long-term data proving that the lens stays clear and functional for decades. Those are hurdles that must be crossed before JelliSee can be widely offered in the UK or anywhere else.
The Challenges JelliSee Faces
While the potential is exciting, there are also big challenges to overcome:
- Biocompatibility: The gel must stay perfectly clear and safe in the eye for decades. Any clouding or reaction would compromise vision.
- Capsular changes: After cataract surgery, the capsular bag tends to shrink and scar, which could interfere with how the injectable lens functions.
- Surgical technique: Surgeons will need to master new methods for injecting and shaping the gel correctly. This may involve a learning curve and specialised equipment.
- Predictability: The lens must provide accurate optical power for distance vision, with the right amount of adjustment for near tasks. Any variability could leave patients needing glasses or further procedures.
- Regulatory approval: Before patients can access JelliSee, it must go through rigorous approval processes, which take years and demand solid evidence of safety and effectiveness.
What This Means for Patients
If you’re a patient thinking about cataract surgery, what does JelliSee mean for you? For now, it means something to watch, not something to choose immediately. The technology is still in its developmental phase, so the lenses available today remain the established monofocal, multifocal, trifocal, and EDOF options.
But looking to the future, injectable accommodating lenses like JelliSee could provide a far more natural outcome. You might be able to regain the kind of vision you had in your 20s, without the compromises of today’s premium lenses.
It’s important, though, to keep your expectations grounded. Medical innovations take time. Even if the trials continue to show success, it may be several years before JelliSee becomes available to patients in the UK.
Looking Ahead: The Future of Cataract Surgery
When you step back and look at the bigger picture, JelliSee represents the next phase in cataract surgery’s evolution. First came the shift from large-incision surgery to modern microsurgery. Then came foldable IOLs that made smaller incisions possible. Then premium lenses introduced multifocality and extended depth of focus. The logical next leap is restoring accommodation.
If JelliSee or similar injectable designs succeed, cataract surgery will no longer just be about removing cloudiness. It will become about fully rejuvenating the eye’s ability to see at all distances, with clarity and flexibility. That would truly be a revolution in vision care.
Understood — I’ll rewrite the FAQ section in the same style we’ve used for your other cataract lens articles. Each answer will be a clear, full paragraph (not too short, not clipped), direct in tone, UK English, and without duplication. Here’s the revised section:
FAQ: JelliSee and Injectable Lenses
1. How does the JelliSee lens actually work once it is inside the eye?
The JelliSee lens is injected into the capsular bag as a gel, which then sets into a transparent, flexible structure. Unlike traditional IOLs, it is designed to interact with the ciliary muscles of the eye. When these muscles contract or relax, they cause the curvature of the new lens surface to change slightly, which in turn alters its focusing power. This process is intended to replicate the natural accommodation mechanism, meaning patients could shift focus from distant objects to near tasks without relying on multiple optical zones or glasses.
2. Is JelliSee currently available for people having cataract surgery?
No, JelliSee is not yet available as a routine option for cataract patients. At the moment it is still undergoing clinical trials and research to establish both safety and effectiveness. Only a very small number of patients worldwide have received the lens as part of early pilot studies. Until larger-scale trials are completed and regulators in regions such as the UK, EU, and US approve it, JelliSee remains experimental rather than a treatment you can request from your surgeon.
3. In what ways does JelliSee surgery differ from standard cataract surgery?
The first steps are identical to normal cataract surgery: the cloudy natural lens is removed, leaving the transparent capsule behind. The main difference comes when it is time to insert the replacement lens. Instead of folding and placing a pre-made solid IOL into the capsule, the surgeon injects the JelliSee gel material into it. This gel then solidifies into a lens that adapts to the eye’s natural focusing movements. While the overall procedure would feel familiar to patients, the implantation stage requires new techniques and equipment for surgeons.
4. How long is the injectable gel expected to stay clear in the eye?
The goal is for the gel to remain perfectly transparent and stable for decades, just like a conventional IOL. Early laboratory work and animal studies suggest that the material is biocompatible and resistant to clouding, but only long-term human follow-up can confirm this. At present, researchers are monitoring patients who have received JelliSee lenses to check for any sign of haze, opacification, or unwanted reactions. Proving clarity over decades will be essential before it can be widely adopted.
5. Could JelliSee remove the need for reading glasses completely?
That is exactly what the technology aims to achieve. By restoring a wide range of accommodation, the lens could allow patients to focus at near, intermediate, and far distances seamlessly. In practical terms, that means reading a book, working at a computer, and driving could all be possible without additional glasses. However, how well this works in the long run will depend on individual factors such as ciliary muscle strength and the stability of the injected lens over time.
6. Are there risks that are unique to JelliSee compared to normal IOLs?
Yes, there are some specific risks to consider. Because the lens is formed from an injected gel, there is a possibility of leakage during surgery if the capsule is not sealed perfectly. The way the gel interacts with the capsule as it heals also needs careful monitoring, as too much scarring could interfere with its ability to change shape. Additionally, if the lens ever needed to be replaced, removing it might be more complex than removing a traditional solid IOL. These are all areas researchers are watching closely in early trials.
7. How does JelliSee compare with multifocal or trifocal lenses currently on the market?
Multifocal and trifocal lenses rely on splitting light into different zones to give patients more than one focal point. While effective, they can cause visual side effects such as halos around lights at night and reduced contrast. JelliSee takes a different route by aiming to change the power of the lens itself in a smooth, natural way, more like a young eye. If it works as intended, it could give clear vision across all distances without the light-splitting compromises of diffractive optics.
8. Who might benefit most from JelliSee once it becomes available?
The lens would appeal to patients who want maximum independence from glasses after cataract surgery and who are looking for a solution that mimics the natural function of the eye. It might also be suitable for younger patients considering lens replacement for presbyopia, where the natural lens is clear but no longer flexible. However, not every eye is the same, and factors such as capsular health, eye anatomy, and muscle strength will all play a role in determining suitability.
9. When might patients in the UK realistically expect to access JelliSee?
It is difficult to give a firm timeline. Medical devices often take years to progress from small-scale human trials to regulatory approval. If results remain promising and larger studies confirm safety and effectiveness, it might reach the UK market in the coming years, but it is unlikely to be an option in the immediate future. Patients should think of JelliSee as a technology in development rather than something they can request today.
10. Could JelliSee be adapted or combined with other technologies in the future?
That is certainly a possibility. Future versions of the lens could include toric correction for astigmatism, light-adjustable properties to fine-tune vision after surgery, or hybrid designs that blend injectable accommodation with other optical improvements. At this stage, the priority is proving the core concept works safely and reliably. But as with all medical technology, success at one stage often opens the door to further refinements and more customised solutions for patients.
Final Thoughts
JelliSee is one of the boldest ideas in cataract surgery today — an injectable, shape-changing lens that tries to recreate the natural focusing system of the eye. If successful, it could mean a future where patients don’t just see clearly after cataract surgery, but also regain the ability to focus smoothly across all distances without glasses.
The journey from early trials to everyday availability will take time, and challenges remain. But the promise is clear: cataract surgery is moving towards a new era, and JelliSee is one of the technologies leading that charge.
References
- Presbyopia Physician (2024). The JelliSee accommodating IOL: An injectable approach to restoring vision. Presbyopia Physician, December 2024. Available at: https://www.presbyopiaphysician.com/issues/2024/december/the-jellisee-accommodating-iol/ [Accessed 16 October 2025].
- Ophthalmology Management (2025). The holy grail of cataract surgery: Update on accommodating IOLs. Ophthalmology Management, September 2025. Available at: https://ophthalmologymanagement.com/issues/2025/september/the-holy-grail-of-cataract-surgery/ [Accessed 16 October 2025].
- EyeWorld (2024). Current accommodating lenses in development. EyeWorld, April 2024. Available at: https://www.eyeworld.org/2024/current-accommodating-lenses-in-development/ [Accessed 16 October 2025].
- CRSToday (2024). Update on accommodating IOLs in the clinical pipeline. Cataract & Refractive Surgery Today, August 2024. Available at: https://crstoday.com/articles/aug-2024/update-on-accommodating-iols/ [Accessed 16 October 2025].