Is there genuine hope or just illusion? - Medics in China assert they've healed diabetes.
A 59-year-old man, who had been living with diabetes for 25 years, has reportedly been free of medication since 2022 after undergoing a stem cell therapy, as claimed by researchers from three institutions in Shanghai. This information was published in the journal "Cell Discovery."
In this experimental treatment, the patient's stem cells were modified in the lab to become insulin-producing cells, known as islet cells, and were transplanted.
Islet cells are regenerated
The researchers note that the patient required multiple insulin injections daily and was at risk of a diabetic coma before the treatment. He underwent a kidney transplant in 2017 and had been taking medications that suppress the immune system since then, due to his diabetes.
In diabetes patients, the islet cells in the pancreas either fail to produce enough insulin (Type 1) or produce too much (Type 2), leading to unregulated blood sugar levels. These cells had almost lost their function in the Chinese patient.
The Chinese researchers observed that the patient started producing insulin again after the transplantation of these artificially modified stem cells from the patient.
German expert shares skepticism
Prof. Dr. Stephan Martin, the head of diabetology and director of the West German Diabetes and Health Center in Düsseldorf, expresses concern at the study: "I have serious doubts that the patient truly had Type 2 diabetes. The procedure seems to have more similarities with Type 1 diabetes initially."
Prof. Dr. Martin envisions the potential for this therapy being limited to a small group of Type 1 diabetics. "Research into similar therapies has been ongoing for years," he states. There have been attempts in the past to transplant foreign islet cells in Germany, which were isolated from pancreatic tissue donors and then transferred to the recipient's liver via injection.
"Thus, this is an intriguing first step in the study of such therapies," Prof. Dr. Martin summarizes.
Limited benefits and potential dangers
Prof. Dr. Martin is not convinced by this as a breakthrough: "This is a single case, and these therapies need to be explored in larger groups."
Moreover, Prof. Dr. Martin expresses criticism of the need for immune system suppression during the treatment: "There is no advantage over existing diabetes treatments, as the risks associated with immune system suppression in a stem cell therapy are substantial."
The transformation of stem cells into functioning islet cells also needs to be simplified since the procedure is currently complicated and pricey.
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Source: symclub.org
