Page 24 - Frederick Banting News Today

Until chronic problems in the insulin market are addressed, many vulnerable patients will continue to suffer unnecessarily

Of the roughly 420 million humans who live with diabetes, some 150 million rely on insulin "to live a full and healthy life," per Diabetes Canada. Few if any know...

AMSTERDAM — After insulin was discovered in 1921, the Canadian scientists behind the breakthrough sold the patent for their formula for just Can$1. As medical researcher Frederick Banting said at the time, they wanted to make it as widely available as possible because “it belongs to the world”. In the century since then, a host of improved forms of insulin have been developed,

Today in History for Feb. 11:

In today's Morning Brief, testing requirements for fully vaccinated travellers make no sense, two infectious diseases experts say. Also, why the convoy protests have struck a chord with U.S. right-wing commentators.

On this date, Feb. 11, in history:

A life-saving treatment for millions over the past 100 years, the story behind insulins discovery and use is less well-known, and includes tussles among scientists and a battle for the Nobel Prize.

Insulin is vital for the 415 million living with diabetes worldwide. Maria Silva Calvo comments on its inaccessibility in many countries, showing the advancements that still need to be made in treating, and one day curing, the disease.

KEY POINTS In Canada, commercial data brokers are currently able to use deidentified patient data from pharmacies, private drug insurers, the federal government and medical clinics without patient consent. They are able to do this because of a lack of privacy protections for deidentified data. A

Promising news for diabetics: An early-stage clinical trial suggests stem cells that have been implanted in humans can transform into ­pancreas cells secrete insulin in response to eating.