Posted on 03/11/2005 1:49:46 PM PST by 1 spark
LONDON: British doctors announced on Wednesday that they had cured a 61-year-old man who had suffered from the most extreme form of diabetes for over 30 years by injecting pancreatic cells into his liver.
The operation, the first completely successful transplant of so-called islet cells in Britain, builds on and amplifies pioneering research in Canada, and offers hope for patients with this potentially lethal disease around the world, they said.
Professor Stephanie Amiel, a consultant in diabetes at King’s College Hospital where the breakthrough treatment was carried out, said the achievement was “hugely exciting”. “The implications for the future are enormous. Eventually this could mean the end of insulin dependence for all Type 1 [Type 2] diabetes sufferers,” Amiel said.
Diabetes is caused by a problem with insulin, a hormone that stimulates the body’s cells into absorbing the energy source glucose from the blood. Insulin is produced by one of two classes of islet cells, which exist in the pancreas, a hand-sized organ located behind the stomach. This extreme form of diabetes develops, when the immune system destroys these beta-class islet cells, leaving the patient with a lifelong dependency on insulin injections.
Insulin deficiency can lead to heart and blood disorders that are responsible for an estimated 50 to 80 percent of the deaths that occur among diabetics. afp
My heartfelt congratulations to the gentleman. I can imagine his joy at finally being free of diabetes. I hope that one day soon, I will be as fortunate as he is.
And thank you for posting this article.
Moi ausi Eh!
I'm hoping right with you. My father has type 2, as does a dear friend. Here's the same story, but from a different source. Note they says this procedure has already worked on someone from Canada.
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/1938.html
And you wait...
And you wait...
And you wait...
And you wait...
Diabetes is a leading serious health problem. It's the number one cause of blindness in the U.S., and it has so many other problems associated with it. My mom is diabetic and she has serious vision problems, had several serious operations on her eyes, can no longer drive--she has to be careful about her feet, has lost a lot of sensation in them, and for that reason buys only plastic cups now, so she doesn't have to worry about breaking one and not being able to see to clean up broken glass and then stepping on it.
I've heard of a few similar tests they are doing with islet cell 'transplants' here in the U.S. I think we're closer to finding a cure for diabetes than for cancer, I mean it's really close. Hopefully, the viable cure will come in my lifetime.
ping
Undergoing clinical trials at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston.
Does that translate to "Me, too, eh"? :-)
So true. And it's often questioned whether or not cures for various diseases are suppressed because of money and politics.
You're right. But I try to remain positive. My mother was told that I wouldn't live to be 20 when I was diagnosed at 9 months and here I am, at almost 39 years old.
Ping
Big whoops. ALready posted here:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1359044/posts
sorry!
Please don't apologize. If you hadn't posted this, I never would have seen the article.
It's not the cause of Type 1 diabetes.
There is no way to keep up with all the articles posted here and many times a duplicate or triplicate post is the only way some people ever see the information.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.