First implants derived from stem cells to ‘cure’ type 1 diabetes | New Scientist what do you all see happening with this? I dont want to get my hopes up.
Not enough info for me to formulate any sort of useful opinion. I’m ALWAYS skeptical of “cures” when it comes to diabetes. I’ve been hearing such claims for decades. As time goes on, sure we are getting “closer”, but that doesn’t mean anything viable is truly imminent. For now, good management is what we strive for…
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Yep i feel skeptical too. They always make it sound like its just around the corner. I was told 17 years ago that it was just around the corner. I dont even want a cure, just a better way of managing.
There is a sentence in that article that immediately shows it’s not worth anything for you.
There is a key phrase that you should always look for. If you see something such as this:
If effective, it could free people with type 1 diabetes from having to closely monitor their blood sugar levels and inject insulin, although they would need to take immunosuppressive drugs to stop their bodies from destroying the new cells.
Then don’t get your hopes up, it’s not worth the emotional investment.
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Is there a big problem with immunosuppressive drugs? Sorry i dont really know.
Your body has a hard time fighting infection and sickness. Lot’s of potential problems.
For some who are taking them, any exposure to people or germs or bacteria can be troubling. Depending on what you are taking, things like going to shopping malls, movie theaters, pets, gardening, even kissing can cause issues.
For me, any immunosuppressive drugs is a deal-breaker for any supposed cure.
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What Eddie2 said!
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I’m also with Eddie2
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Also to fight cancer cells. You are at way higher risk of many types of cancer on immunosuppressive drugs. No thanks.
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You mean I may already be a candidate for the new pancreas? Yes I know they do not know this yet, but I may already be their breakthrough !!!.
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Right on, Eddie. Viacyte’s first product requires immunosuppression. If it works out, the next product will be tested without the drugs. I’m not that optimistic about the encapsulation method.
My best bet is on the individually encapsulated islets produced by other labs (a number of them, including Harvard). They have better methods of protecting the islets from attack with a form of seaweed covering on a per-cell basis. There is an automated process of covering the islets.
Yet almost all encapsulated islets are still in animal studies to my knowledge. One or more are being tested, even commercialized, in dogs. One or two that have tested in humans in Latin America a few years ago, haven’t been successful.
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I do not see any future using immunosuppressants. I have used 6 of these for RA in 15 years. The thing is you never know when they will stop working and when they do the cells will be gone before they are rescued. In addition they are extremely expensive. Currently I use a immunsuppresant that costs 15K every 4 months.
I have high hopes for encapsulation.
Don’t get excited. I am not sure if they were using stem cells back in the 80s but I was in a trial getting pancreas cells. It worked for a few months then they died off.
The trial was being done at University of Minnesota. I only looked at article quickly so not sure what is difference. Stem Cells, I don’t remember that term. Hey I guess we need to stay positive but do you actually think they will come up with “A Cure”. Billions of dollar’s are spent by us yearly. Call me parrinoid but I truly believe they could curr Cancer, Diabetes whatever it is. INSULIN, TEST STRIPS, PUMPS, EVERYTHING WE NEED. The jobs that would be lost the company’s that would go out of business just a hit on our economy. I don’t want to be negative but it’s how I feel. I was a young child when I got my diagnosis. Several years later when I was old enough to know questions to ask and the Dr told me cure in 4 or 5 years. It’s been almost 50 years now. Still pricking fingers and taking insulin.
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Do the research companies get kickbacks from test strip companies and insulin pump companies to avoid finding a cure?
Or do the strip companies and pump companies secretly sabotage the cures that could otherwise be easily found?
From ther article:
“If it works, we would call it a functional cure,” says Paul Laikind, of Viacyte. “It’s not truly a cure because we wouldn’t address the autoimmune cause of the disease, but we would be replacing the missing cells.”
Nope. Not a cure. You would replace one drug (insulin) with another (auto immune).
Brad3,
I’m interested in how you arrived at your conclusion regarding how cures are being suppressed. When I was a young lad, there was this thing called Polio and everyone dreaded it. Then, this man named Salk offered a vaccine that would protect us. And it worked, soon to be followed with the orally-administered Sabin sugar cube. I’ve got to believe that it was not a good year for iron lung manufacturers or facilities that cared for the many thousands of paralyzed victims. Same thing is true for childhood diseases like mumps and measles.
I have no doubt that companies can and do tell untruthful things about their products and that they push for legislation helpful to their own industry. But I have a hard time understanding how a conspiracy to suppress cures of diabetes and cancer on a worldwide scale is even possible. Who is pulling the strings on this one? How is this coverup of epic proportions managed so that no information is leaked to the public?
I’ve always gone on the theory that cures for diabetes and cancer are really hard and that we only make small incremental steps. But if your contention is true, I’d really like to know more about how you came to that belief.
Hello other displayname!
To comment on the current tangent here…
I think it’s a little of both. Yes it is hard to find a cure for an autoimmune disease like type 1, but I do believe that from a business standpoint it would be incredibly foolish for companies with billions of dollars at stake NOT to do everything in their power to at the very least make it hard for a cure to be researched and developed, if not out right sabotage them if possible. They can do a lot through influencing regulations and such, and big corporations can also do a lot to make sure that what they do flies under the radar.
Goodness knows they sure aren’t using their money to help find a cure lol.
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Obviously you did not my entire post. Reread it please. And yes Polio was cured. Back in the 55. Big pharmaceutical company’s and people in general had more morals. Of course I can be wrong as I STATED in my post.
Speaking of other diseases I know they have a cure for many cancers but it is not being used. Scientists have taken the aids virus and removed the part of the cell that has the killing part and left the good part of virus out. The virus goes in and kills the cancer cells. When they give it to people dieing there body temperature gets so high and they go into a coma. A week later they wake up with no signs of cancer. It’s documented check it out. Do a search. Why is it that big pharmaceutical company’s are not making this drug available? It’s my opinion and that is what I said in my post that am I paranoid or maybe not
Yes I believe in our life time there will be no cure for diabetes.
Why because billions of dollars are spent on somewhat controlling it but not curing it.
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I would double check on that info by googling the Polio vaccine and SV-40, which infected at least 100 million polio doses in the 60s, verified by the CDC only in recent years. That’s our gift. The government actively suppressed this info, even though most of us were affected/infected.
Why are you telling them to double-check that information? It’s absolutely true that the Salk vaccine prevented us from getting Polio. I remember getting the sugar cube in school. Polio is a devastating disease and you certainly do not want to get that because you’re afraid of a medication