Pager-shaped insulin pumps that infuse a steady trickle through a tube inserted into the skin make it easier to maintain a steady state. That way I'm not bottoming out on the plane. A new form of long-acting insulin set to be introduced in the fall by Aventis Pharmaceuticals in Parsippany, N.J., should also flatten the peaks, maintaining a steady level for 24 hours. And companies are testing inhaled forms of insulin that could one day eliminate injections completely while allowing patients to take insulin in frequent, small doses. Yet doctors say their phones are ringing off the hook from diabetics wanting islet-cell transplantation.
Many hurdles remain.
Like other transplant recipients, participants in the Alberta study have to take drugs that suppress their immune system so it won't reject the foreign cells. And donor islet cells are scarce. Each patient received cells from at least two pancreases and just 3,000 are donated each year in the United States. Pokerznik is thrilled with her new freedom but acknowledges that the therapy is still experimental. Really, this is just the beginning.