This is testing for Type I Diabetes but I found it interesting.
Sick Kids researchers embark on diabetes prevention study
TORONTO, Nov. 2 /CNW/ - Diabetes researchers at The Hospital for Sick
Children (HSC) are hoping that thousands of Canadians will volunteer to be
screened as part of a study aimed at preventing type 1 diabetes, also known as
juvenile diabetes.
The Sick Kids research team has joined a large-scale North American
clinical trial being coordinated by the National Institutes of Health in the
United States. In order to recruit the 830 volunteers needed for the study,
more than 80,000 relatives of people with type 1 diabetes must be screened for
two specific antibodies associated with the eventual risk of development of
type 1 diabetes.
''Earlier studies have shown that high levels of these antibodies in a
person's blood, combined with other risk factors, indicates that he or she may
develop diabetes within five years,'' explains endocrinologist Diane Wherrett,
who is leading the Sick Kids participation in the study. ''Research has also
indicated that it may be possible to prevent type 1 diabetes by immunizing
with insulin.''
The trial began in the United States in 1994 but finding enough
volunteers to participate in the study is turning out to be more difficult
than originally anticipated. The expansion of the study into Canada should aid
their efforts, as up to 25 new cases per 100,000 people are diagnosed each
year in both countries.
''We are hoping that many Canadians will call us and offer to be screened
for the trial,'' says Dr. Denis Daneman, head of Endocrinology at HSC and a
collaborator in the study. ''As long as they have a relative with type 1
diabetes and are between the ages of 3 and 45 they are probably eligible for
screening.''
People with the antibodies and positive results on further testing who
agree to participate in the trial will be assigned to one of two trials,
depending on their degree of risk for developing the disorder. Volunteers with
a higher risk for type 1 diabetes will be randomly assigned to a control group
or to a group receiving insulin injections. Those at a moderate risk will be
randomly assigned to a control group or to a group receiving an oral capsule
of insulin crystals. While insulin crystals cannot be used to treat diabetes,
as they are digested by the body, they may stop the body's immune system from
destroying insulin-producing cells.
People with Type 1 diabetes do not produce insulin, a hormone that
regulates how cells obtain energy from carbohydrates. T-cells produced by the
body's immune system mistakenly destroy insulin-producing cells. As a result,
sugar levels in the blood build up to dangerous levels, causing damage to the
eyes, kidneys, nerves and heart. Without daily insulin injections, people with
type 1 diabetes will lapse into a coma and eventually die.
Three other Canadian centres are participating in the trial: BC
Children's Hospital in Vancouver, Foothills Hospital in Calgary, and the
University of Alberta, Edmonton. Canadians can call a toll-free number,
1-800-HALT-DM1 (1-800-425-8361), to be referred to the screening centre
nearest them. Local residents can call Carrie McLellan, HSC Diabetes Research
Coordinator, directly at 416-813-5858.
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