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Our researchers are working on different ways to develop a cure for type 1 diabetes - from growing insulin-producing beta cells in labs to hacking the immune system.
Learn about the technologies that can deliver insulin automatically when needed. And discover the next generation of insulins that are currently being developed.
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Home > Knowledge & support > About type 1 diabetes > Treatments for type 1 diabetes
Learn about the different ways of putting insulin into your body, and how to manage your blood glucose levels.
Whether you’re newly diagnosed or have lived with type 1 for some time, you’ll work with your Diabetes Healthcare Team to get a treatment plan that works for you. It’s good to know as much as you can, but remember, you don’t have to learn it all at once. This is information you can keep coming back to throughout your type 1 journey.
There are two parts to treating type 1 diabetes – putting insulin into your body and managing your blood glucose levels. This is because when you have type 1 diabetes, your body can’t make its own insulin, so it has no way of regulating the amount of glucose in your blood.
Lots of technology has been developed to help manage type 1 diabetes. There are devices which help to monitor your blood glucose levels, like blood glucose meters, continuous glucose monitors and flash glucose monitors, and devices to administer insulin, like smart pens and insulin pumps. Sometimes the technology works together in what are called ‘hybrid closed loop systems’ or the ‘artificial pancreas.’
We’ve built a type 1 technology-finding tool, which will show you what’s available in your area and help you to have better discussions about technology with your healthcare team.
There are different types of insulin and pieces of kit that get insulin into your body. Find out more about what insulin is, how to inject and how to use insulin pumps and smart pens.
You can use blood glucose meters to check your blood glucose levels throughout the day. These are often referred to as ‘finger prick tests’. If you’d like to use more advanced technology, find out more about continuous glucose monitors and flash glucose monitors.
Islet cell transplants, which replace the cells that secrete insulin, are not routinely offered unless you’re dealing with hypo unawareness. Find out more about islet transplants.
Insulin is a hormone that is made by beta cells in the pancreas. When you eat, insulin is released to stop the levels of glucose (sugar) in your blood going too high and becoming dangerous. It does this by moving glucose into your cells to give you energy. Find out about the different types of insulin and how to get it into your body.
An islet transplant involves extracting the islets of Langerhans (known as ‘islets’ for short) from the pancreas of an organ donor, then transplanting those islets into you. Islet transplants are not a routine treatment for type 1 diabetes. This might seem surprising as an islet transplant can mean that someone does not need to inject insulin for a number of years after their transplant.
Biosimilar insulins are new versions of different sorts of insulin, which are likely to become available soon. Find out more about what biosimilar insulins are and how they might affect your type 1 diabetes treatment.
Dr Beall’s research will test whether new drugs developed and made at the University of Exeter can reduce the risk of a severe hypo by restoring the body’s ability to sense hypoglycaemia.
Dr Joanne Boldison is a researcher at the University of Exeter who is studying a type of immune cell called B lymphocytes, known as B-cells for short. She thinks they may be involved developing type 1 diabetes and could be a target for potential treatments for type 1 diabetes.
Thanks to funding from JDRF, Professor Colin Dayan at Cardiff University is setting up a clinical trials platform called T1D Plus. Seven different treatments have already been shown in clinical trials to slow the autoimmune process that attacks beta cells, leading to type 1.
Our guide to type 1 diabetes technology gives you information on how to use insulin pumps, continuous glucose monitoring, flash monitoring, blood glucose meters and hybrid closed loop systems, letting you know what’s available on the NHS.
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