November 9, 2001

More than 16 million people in the United States suffer from some form of diabetes; however, only about 11 million are diagnosed. Diabetes is the main cause of kidney failure, limb amputations and new-onset blindness in adults and also is a major cause of heart disease and stroke. To promote awareness about this chronic disease and offer information to the MGH community, the MGH Diabetes Center is recognizing November as National Diabetes Awareness Month with a special seminar by David Nathan, MD, director of the center, along with other activities.

Nathan's talk, "Diabetes: The Good, the Bad and the Hopeful," will be held Nov. 28, noon to 1 pm in the O'Keeffe Auditorium. The seminar will focus on the reasons for the increase of diabetes, as well as promising research and treatments for the disease. In addition, MGH Diabetes Center staff will host an information table in the Main Corridor Nov. 13, 8 am to 1 pm, and Nov. 19, 11 am to 4 pm.

The MGH Diabetes Center is one of the largest and oldest clinical and academic centers dedicated to the treatment and investigation of diabetes and its complications.

Most recently, the center spearheaded a nationwide, multi-center clinical trial called the Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), which discovered that at least 10 million Americans at high risk for type 2 diabetes can sharply lower their chances of getting the disease with diet and exercise.

The DPP found that a medication used to treat diabetes also was effective in lowering the risk for the disease. On the advice of the DPP's external data monitoring board, the trial ended a year early because the data clearly had answered the main research questions.

"Every year a person can live free of diabetes means an added year of life free of the suffering, disability and the medical costs incurred by this disease," says Nathan, who was the national chair of the DPP study.

The MGH Diabetes Center currently is conducting two other research studies aimed at patients with type 2 diabetes. One study is evaluating whether weight loss can improve the long-term health of diabetics who are overweight. The other is studying whether a diabetes medication can reduce the risk of heart disease in patients who use insulin. For more information about these studies and other center programs, call
(617) 726-1847.