A 41-year-old man has recently become the first European with diabetes type 1 to cut off insulin therapy. He was submitted to a treatment that consisted in transplanting pancreatic islet cells, the cells responsible for producing insulin, using the BioHub technique. The technique was developed by the Diabetes Research Institute (DRI), and it’s objective is to protect pancreatic islets from attacks by the immune system.

“The implanted islets replace the defective islets and create new insulin-producing cells”

The therapy consists of using the patient’s own plasma in combination with the enzyme thrombin to create a gel-like substance that sticks to the omentum (the tissue covering the abdominal organs) that is able to hold the islet cells in place. The BioHub is a small silicon wafer that contains islet cells. The implanted islets replace the defective islets and create new insulin-producing cells.

This is the second time a type 1 diabetes patient has come off insulin with this therapy. The first was a Texas woman who received the treatment in September 2015.

Click here to visit the DRI website to learn more about the BioHub program.