In a significant development for diabetes treatment, Chinese researchers have reported a potential cure using cell therapy.
This breakthrough study, published in the journal Cell Discovery, outlines the successful treatment of a 59-year-old man with type 2 diabetes. The patient, who had been dependent on daily insulin injections for 25 years, underwent a novel cell transplant in July 2021.
The procedure involved creating lab-grown replicas of insulin-producing islet cells, which were then transplanted into the patient.
Remarkably, within eleven weeks, the patient no longer required external insulin. Over the following year, he gradually reduced and eventually stopped taking oral medication for blood sugar control. Subsequent follow-up examinations confirmed that the patient’s pancreatic islet cells had restored function, allowing him to remain medication-free for over 33 months.
The success of this treatment has been viewed as a major advancement in cell therapy for diabetes, although it involves only a single patient.
Professor Timothy Kieffer from the University of British Columbia called it "an important advance in the field." However, he cautioned that further large-scale trials are necessary to confirm the efficacy and safety of this approach before it can be widely implemented.
This development brings new hope to millions of people with diabetes, suggesting a future where the disease can potentially be cured. Nonetheless, extensive research and validation are still required to translate this success into a broadly available treatment.
Globally, diabetes is a growing concern. According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), by 2021, an estimated 537 million adults aged 20-79 were living with diabetes. This number is projected to rise to 643 million by 2030 and an alarming 783 million by 2045, indicating that one in eight adults worldwide will have diabetes by 2045, a 46% increase.
Furthermore, the burden of diabetes is disproportionately distributed, with three out of four adults with the condition living in low- and middle-income countries.