7.20.2010

A cure: I still want one.

I too was told that there would be a cure in 10 years, when I was diagnosed with Type 1 in 1996. It has been 14. In today's health section of the New York Times this essay chronicles the steps made, both forwards and backwards, in the hunt for a cure for diabetes and the many times that the author has been led to believe that there was hope on the horizon.  I have to admit that there have been many improvements in the way we treat diabetes since I was diagnosed. Insulin pens, pumps, and now continuous blood glucose monitoring systems with the hope of an artificial pancreas in the near future.  I have taken advantage of these advancements and they have improved my quality of life.  However, I have to admit that I don't have a strong sense of assuredness when it comes to finding a cure. But that doesn't mean that I stop hoping for one.

3 comments:

  1. Sigh. I totally feel you on this. I'm hopeful for a cure but not expecting one any time soon. On second thought, I probably wouldn't know what to do if I didn't have various robot parts on me and had to test my bg every few hours (or beep throughout the day).

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  2. I totally understand. It would be freaky to not test bg fifty millions times a day or have the pump beep, vibrate or screech at me.

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  3. Great post on this, Abbey. I'm with you there - don't have much realistic belief that I'll see a cure in my lifetime, or that if there is one that it'd apply to me. After 26 years and hearing the "five years or ten 10 years" as long as I can remember, it weighs on you. But, there is hope. Always hope.

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