Boston Channel - New Diabetes Treatment Coming To Boston



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New Diabetes Treatment Coming To Boston

Six Patients To Be Enrolled In Area

BOSTON, Posted 4:09 p.m. EDT July 13, 2000 -- A couple of Boston area residents will have a chance to try the promising, new diabetes treatment announced last month in Canada.

The Center for Islet Transplantation at Harvard Medical School is one of 10 sites worldwide that will test a new treatment for Type One diabetes.

STUDY INFORMATION:

For more information on the study, go to the Immune Tolerance Network or call (773) 834-5341.

The treatment involves injecting healthy cells, called islets, from the pancreases of cadavers. Researchers in Edmonton last month announced that eight patients had gone 14 months without their daily insulin shots after receiving the treatment.

"There is a tremendous amount of excitement, because this is considered and has been reported as a big advancement in the field of islet transplantation," Dr. Gordon Weir of Joslin Diabetes Center said. "The patients quite understandably are quite desperate to be able to get a transplant and be able to get rid of their diabetes."

The study will enroll 40 patients who have not been able to control their diabetes with insulin injections. Just six patients will be enrolled in the Boston area.