Israeli researchers make pioneering breakthrough in diabetes treatment – The Jewish Chronicle

The issue of immune system rejection of cell-based treatments has been an obstacle in similar research for decades. If this technology proves successful, it could also benefit various other chronic conditions requiring biologic therapies, such as haemophilia.

Currently, the implant has only been tested on mice and non-human primates. Positive results in both provide the basis for moving on to clinical trials in humans.

The research team in Israel is led by Assistant Professor Shady Farah, who described the implant as “a factory for manufacturing drugs inside the body”.

Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Massachusetts are among the American collaborators on the project.

Such a breakthrough could be a game-changer for some 200 million people worldwide who live with diabetes.

Currently, those with the condition must inject insulin up to five times daily, and do so via various means, including insulin pumps, delivery pens, and needles.

Insulin also does not come cheaply. In the US, for instance, injectable insulin can range anywhere from $25-$300 per vial, and a patient may require as many as six vials per month, per the World Population Review.