Researchers at the National Eye Institute (NEI) have discovered a novel therapeutic strategy of using one or more selective estrogen-receptor modulators (SERMs), which may include the FDA-approved drug, Tamoxifen, for treating retinal degenerative diseases, like retinitis pigmentosa (RP) and age-related degeneration (AMD). SERMs exert their specific protection on photoreceptor degeneration likely by inhibiting microglial activation.