First drug to delay onset of type 1 diabetes made available on NHS

Image source, Family photo Image caption, Theo Sebastian-Jenkin was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes as a young boy after displaying extreme fatigue, weight loss and other symptoms By Jim Reed Health reporter Published 9 hours ago The first drug that can delay the onset of type 1 diabetes is being made available on the NHS in England and Wales. Teplizumab is a form of immunotherapy that can give people three extra years before they develop symptoms and need lifelong insulin treatment. The NHS medicines body described its decision as "genuinely exciting", with hundreds of children and young people likely to benefit each year. Type 1 diabetes can develop at any time, but the most common age of diagnosis is in early teenage years. Groups representing patients describe the potential impact of the drug as "momentous", after decades of work to bring it to this stage. "If it were your child or someone you love, you would want to do everything possible to give them more years without the daily burden of managing this relentless condition," says Karen Addington, the chief executive of the charity Breakthrough T1D. "We now have a treatment that can help make that possible". Type 1 diabetes is caused when the body's own immune system starts attacking the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. It is different from the type 2 form of the disease, which is often - but not always - associated with being overweight. People with type 1 diabetes must monitor their blood glucose levels and administer insulin, either through injections or a pump, to replace the hormone their bodies can no longer produce enough of. Image source, Family photo Image caption, Theo Sebastian-Jenkins with his dad Ben, sister and mum, Vicky, at a fundraising walk for research into type 1 diabetes Theo Sebastian-Jenkins, now eight, was diagnosed when he was four, after his parents took him to A&E – he had been feeling unusually tired at home, was constantly thirsty and had been losing weight. At the time, he was too young to qualify for the new drug, which can be given from eight years old. He is now doing well but his condition needs to be carefully managed – his diet must be closely watched and his blood sugar checked. If it goes too low it can be a medical emergency. And if levels are high for a long time, it can damage the blood vessels and nerves. "It's something which you can never switch off from," says his mum Vicky. "When you make breakfast, you've got to weigh everything, counting how many carbohydrates are in it, so that you know the right amount of insulin to give." His parents say any medicine that could delay the onset could make a real difference to hundreds of other children each year. "It would be huge for any family to have those three years of childhood back without the worry and the things he's had to deal with," says his dad Ben. Teplizumab must be given as an infusion (by drip into a vein) before symptoms develop, meaning patients first need a blood test showing th