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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."
better than never, and diabetes, though the complications can be gruesome, if managed well is more of a nuisance than a terror. For many, diabetes is a very manageable problem, but instances do occur with circulation problems to the limbs that require amputation. It'll be great when this cure hits the streets, and as with anything, the sooner the better, but rather than complaining that it'll take years before being available to humans, why don't we celebrate the fact that a cure is officially in sight?
That just shows, if the protocol had been released under the BSD or even GPL license, we could have ported it to humans by now.
liqbase
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.
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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 gets me sometimes when comments I see in medical threads are just plain ignorant. Yes, this is only in stage 1 trials. Still, promising results *are* the therapies of the future, and they are relevant and interesting. They are especially relevant when speaking of treating something so widespread and degenerative as diabetes. This already has been an age of miracles, folks. Enjoy what the next 10 years will bring.
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.
For young children, its burdensome, sure but everybody that has to do it gets used to it, just like anyone who has to take any kind of medicine- regardless whether its IM, IV or PO. I wasn't saying that what people go through isn't troublesome, and everyone needs shots at different intervals- everyone is different. There are exceptions to everything. Anyway, my overall point was that rather than saying, well geeze, it'll be 4-6 years before its available, waah- we should be saying Thank Someone that there's even a chance of a cure, otherwise you and your daughter are guaranteed to be doing those shots for a long time to come- now you may only have to do it a few more years- if even that. Insulin pumps have come a long way and are better than giving shots- maybe something better (transdermal patch?) will come along between now and when the 'cure' is available. I happen to know a relative who is Type 1 diabetic and has received awards for having the disease for longer than the vast majority of people (I think he's around 80 and has had it since he was young)- but he's been giving himself shots several times a day his whole life and still manages to have a pretty good existence- he used to run even up to a few years ago, still walks a lot, etc. Its a part of his life and it doesn't slow him down. On the same token, I know another friend and her husband who are in their late 50's and have nearly had to have legs amputated. There's someone on every end of the spectrum, as I said originally- but just be thankful you can look forward to the day you don't have to give those shots anymore, or she may never have to do it herself.