Diabetes Protection Islet Cell Transplant Could Help Diabetes Patients
| Islet Cell Transplant Could Help Diabetes Patients |
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Researchers say they are now looking at a Canadian study to see if it can allow Type-1 diabetes patients to stop taking daily insulin injections.
Statistics show nearly 21 million adult Americans have diabetes. Experts say Type-1 diabetes occurs when special cells, called islets are destroyed by the immune system. Though there is no cure, researchers say they think islet cell transplants procedures could really help. "Use a process to extract the islets out of the pancreas, purify them and then they can be injected back into a patient," says Dr. Daniel Brennan. Experts say the cells are injected into the portal vein, and then travel to the liver where they start generating insulin. "The islets would go off to various parts of the liver where they would be bathed and begin functioning," says Dr. Brennan. Doctors say it's not a cure, but it could lead to a better future for patients. Researchers say the study found many patients develop transplant antibodies, which could complicate future transplants of more islets or an organ. Comments (0)
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