Surgeons at Massachusetts General Hospital have been able to produce a scaffold that is able to support pancreatic islets. These islets are the ones that produce the hormone insulin in the pancreas.
"We are trying to improve the survival and the functionality of the islets by creating their pancreas specific niche," he explained. They are trying to form a cellular structure that resembles the natural resting place on which the islets thrive. Dr. Conrad says "Islet cell transplantation is the only treatment of insulin dependent diabetes that can consistently establish insulin independence.” Therefore allowing the diabetic to live a life semi-free of injections and with all the new clinical studies being done on testing devices perhaps a completely needle free diabetic is not that far off in the future.
Human clinical studies will hopefully begin in the near future at least for this phase of the clinical trials.
Source: American College of Surgeons (ACS)
The information provided on InformationAboutDiabetes.com is designed to support, not replace, the relationship that exists between a patient/site visitor and his/her health professional. This information is solely for informational purposes and does not constitute the practice of medicine. We encourage all visitors to see a licensed physician or nutritionist if they have any concerns regarding health issues related to diet, personal image and any other topics discussed on this site. Neither the owners or employees of InformationAboutDiabetes.com nor the author(s) of site content take responsibility for any possible consequences from any treatment, procedure, exercise, dietary modification, action or application of medication which results from reading this site. Always speak with your primary health care provider before engaging in any form of self treatment. Please see our Legal Statement for further information.
The Diabetes Support Group at SupportGroups.com builds awareness and support for people with Diabetes. If you are a friend or parent of a person that has been diagnosed with Diabetes, or you have been diagnosed with Diabetes, you are not alone. Share experiences and get support in a confidential, caring environment.
Selected Support Groups
Follow and Share InformationAboutDiabetes.com