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NIH Confirms Protocol To Reverse Type 1 Diabetes
FiReaNGeL writes "In 2001, researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital demonstrated the efficacy of a protocol to reverse type 1 diabetes in diabetic mice. New data from a study performed at the National Institutes of Health provides additional confirmation of the ability to reverse type 1 diabetes and on the role of spleen cells in islet regeneration. Spleen cells appear to contribute to islet recovery more in mice who are older and with more advanced diabetes compared with younger mice with less advanced diabetes, in which regeneration of remaining islets may be the dominant mechanism."
Do you understand the difference between Type 1 & Type 2 diabetes? I do not consider needing to give insulin shots 4 times per day to my 21 month old daughter "manageable". She is now 9 and wearing an insulin pump, which means we change her infusion set (a fairly large needle inserted under the skin on her stomach or back) every three days. Type 1 diabetes cannot be managed by diet, exercise & pills!!!
It is very important to note that this is a treatment for reversing Type I diabetes, not Type II.
Type I diabetes comes from an autoimmune reaction against the insulin-producing cells. It is more common in children, and accounts for about 10% of all insulin cases.
Type II diabetes tends to be caused by an insulin insensitivity - the insulin receptor in cells looses its effectiveness. The complications from Type II diabetes tend to be worse, and none of them are pleasant. There are many risk factors for Type II diabetes, some of which a person can't do anything about (i.e., genetic predisposition), but the primary risk factor is obesity and inactivity. So, for the foreseeable future, doctors will no doubt continue to caution people to be vigilant about their weight and, for those under treatment for diabetes, to still be especially vigilant about monitoring their blood sugar levels.
Actually, the research mentioned in the article is not introducing any stem cells, so if that's the source, it doesn't apply to this research. The idea here is that the spleen actually contains 'adult stemcells' that can differentiate into insulin producing cells.
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The research in question is done by Faustman financed (at least partly) by the Iococca Foundation. ( http://www.iacoccafoundation.org/grants_diabetes_
They're preparing for human trials of at least part of this protocol, but it seems that Dr. Faustman's work differs too much from the general direction of diabetes research, and it is not receiving any government funding. I wonder if the NIH mention in this article means that this is going to change.
From the research I've heard about (I have an understandable interest, as a type 1 diabetic), this research seems the 'neatest' solution: fix the immune system so it doesn't attack insulin producing cells anymore, then stimulate an apparently existing system in the human body to start creating new cells. There's still a lot of work to do before we know that this will work in humans, though...
"I must be missing something ... if the technique was first described and shown in 2001, then reaffirmed in 2003, why haven't they moved forward with trying to treat humans with severe/end-stage diabetes? In fact, they don't even discuss the possibility, which makes me wonder if there is something else in play (bad side effects for example). This sounds like a MAJOR medical breakthrough, and typically breakthroughs like this are pushed into more expanded trials and even human tests faster than the researchers at MGH are moving forward."
There is no such thing as severe/end-stage type I diabetes. Usually by the time you are diagnosed, you are at the "severe/end stage" - Your pancreatic beta cells are gone or nearly so. Insulin can prolong your life for decades, and if your bloodsugars are carefully controlled (via aggressive and careful diet, insulin dosing, and glucose monitoring), you will live just as long a life as a normal person.
If you're talking about severe diabetes complications (Kidney damage, retina damage, etc.)- By the time those present themselves, the cumulative damage of years of abnormal bloodsugars is done and curing the underlying diabetes isn't going to help.
Last but not least, you clearly missed the "In the 2001 and 2003 studies, Faustman and colleagues treated end-stage nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice with Freund's complete adjuvant, a substance that suppresses the activity of the immune cells that destroy islets in type 1 diabetes." line. Immunosuppressants are scary shit, and usually considered an absolute last-resort treatment when the other choice is death. Admittedly, it sounds like this MIGHT be a rather targeted immunosuppressant with fewer side effects than most, but still, it's an immunosuppressant.
I've been a type I diabetic for over a decade and have been looking forward to a cure for years. While this article gave me a lot of hope, the mention of immunosuppressants took a lot of it away. There are already quite a few treatments for Type I diabetes that are proven to work, but generally are only given to those who are already on immunosuppressants for another reason. (For example, pancreas or pancreatic beta cell transplants are only given to patients already receiving another transplant who will be on antirejection drugs and immunosuppressants anyway.)
That said, it sounds like there are fewer side effects than other immunosuppressants, as I have heard that there are plans for human trials starting in 2007 or 2008. Six years from the first results in mice to the first human trials is actually quite quick. There are plenty of examples of cases where botched human trials nearly killed the test cases. (Remember that incident a year or two in London where 6-8 test patients basically swelled up like balloons and found that six months later most of them had trashed immune systems and the beginnings of cancer?) People are REALLY, REALLY careful with human trials.
It sounds like they are conducting one more large-scale study in mice before beginning human trials. They didn't have money for it before, but they received a large amount from one of Lee Iacocca's charities to fund further studies.
Given the involvement of immunosuppressants, I hope they are extra careful with human trials. I can wait another decade if it means I won't be developing cancer or a few years after treatment.
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
Type 1 takes over your life. It's horrible for kids. Steals much joy from being young.
You *must* watch your diet all the time or risk coma/death very quickly in the short term, or bad side effects (blindness, loss of limbs, organ failure) in the long term. Getting drunk can get a person in trouble fast, especially if vomitting occurs.
First time your friends see you get sugar low, you'll get looked on as a freak by many people. A sugar low means you'll lose thinking ability (you look dumb) and won't realize what you're doing or what's going on.
This leads quickly (just a few minutes sometimes) to passing out (possible convulsions, spasms) and possibly coma/death if no one knows what's happening. This is all very disturbing to people, even if they know what's happening...and these are just kids.
One diabetic I know had a reaction while driving and got dumb (talking but no real thinking happening) - had five cop cars chasing him before he crashed. The passenger was pretty much freaking - he'd just been talking to the driver and then he just went off into la-la land. *No one* knew what was happening (he did have a medic-alert bracelet but no one noticed)...the cops assumed he was on drugs.
Lucky for him, they called his dad. One cup of juice and 5 minutes, and he was back. The police were surprisingly understanding. Didn't remember anything, though, and he was pissed cause it was so embarrassing.
It's definitely not appealing for getting dates.
Now picture getting sick. You've taken your insulin shot in the morning...not being able to eat means you might need to go to the hospital. You can't let your blood sugar get too low, and the insulin keeps working whether you eat or not.
Worse yet, you could get sick while camping.
Travelling...having to explain about the needles you have while crossing borders over and over. Keeping the insulin good for long periods when travelling in warm weather.
This list keeps going on. I'm not a diabetic, but I'm closely related to some.
-- Life is good. Tastes like chicken.