New Delhi: Here is some encouraging news for millions of Indians who suffer from diabetes.
Researchers in China have reported a potential cure of blood sugar, widely considered to be a ‘siIent killer’, using cell therapy.
The study, published in the journal Cell Discovery, outlines the successful treatment of a man with type 2 diabetes.
The 59-year-old man, who battled diabetes for 25 years, had to take daily insulin injections. He then underwent an innovative cell transplant in July 2021.
Lab-grown replicas of insulin-producing islet cells, found in pancreas, were created and then transplanted into the patient.
Within eleven weeks, the man no l
onger required external insulin, reported the South China Morning Post.
Over the following year, the patient gradually reduced oral medication for blood sugar control, and eventually discontinued tablets.
Regular follow-up tests confirmed a restored function in the man’s pancreatic islet cells, which has allowed him to live without medication for over 33 months.
Though this is a single-patient case study, experts feel it’s a significant breakthrough in diabetes treatment.
It remains to be seen if experts in India take note and try to take it forward.
Large-scale trials are definitely needed to confirm the efficacy and safety of this line of treatment, but Professor Timothy Kieffer, a researcher at University of British Columbia, called it “an important advance in the field.”
According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), an estimated 537 million adults aged 20-79 had diabetes by 2021. The number is projected to jump to 643 million by 2030 and 783 million by 2045. In other words, 1 in 8 adults globally may have diabetes by 2045.