Some New Year's thoughts on the future of diabetes
With another year coming to a close, reflection feels in order. When we began diaTribe in 2006, I noted in my opening letter, “Diabetes is a large and complicated field from multinational pharmaceutical companies to sprawling clinics, from prestigious academic centers to remote research labs. It is filled with exciting breakthroughs and heartbreaking disappointments, but ultimately it's about patients.” And as I now reassess the state of diabetes three years later, this still holds true. The only difference is the size and scope of the disease.
As healthcare takes center stage in our national debate, diabetes has caught much of the limelight. The condition has been deemed headline-worthy, with major news sources – The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal – publishing articles such as, “Prognosis: Numbers Rise in a Diabetes Forecast” and “Health Spotlight Is on Diabetes, Its Control and Its Complications.” A recent study in Diabetes Care suggested the number of people with diabetes stateside will grow from 24 to 44 million over the next 25 years, with diabetes-related healthcare costs jumping from $113 billion to $336 billion. Worldwide, the 285 million people today with the disease are to be 435 million by 2030.
I would be lying if I didn't say that I sometimes feel discouraged by the dearth of real breakthroughs, the glacial pace of scientific progress, and the dreams deferred for genuinely better care or a cure, and yet… I am prone to optimism – it is what brings me into work every day, and it is what keeps me passionate about what we do here at Close Concerns and at diaTribe. The New Year is a time for new beginnings, and for hope, so let’s focus on the possible. With a number of drug candidates waiting in line for approval from the FDA, 2010 should bring new treatments to the field, including three anti-obesity drugs that could offer new options for those struggling to reach or maintain a healthy weight. New diabetes therapies suggest better control with less of the debilitating side effects. Most recently, on Christmas Eve, the Senate passed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a tentative step forward for people with diabetes wrestling with the cost of care. This could be the most important move in many years, getting coverage for more people and keeping those with diabetes from being shut out.
Diabetes has always drawn bright people into the field, and it continues to do so, some of whom we write about this issue. Some willingly volunteer – late last year, Dr. Alan Lewis accepted the position as CEO and President of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), and we had the chance to discuss the organization's priorities, one year in. Others are called upon unwittingly – James S. Hirsch writes of Anna Balogh, who unintentionally became a patient advocate after she was denied work as a Foreign Service officer due to her diabetes. And some are just beginning – in 2010, Kerri Morrone Sparling will welcome a new baby girl, who will surely become a strong supporter for people with diabetes, just as her parents so resoundingly are.
Thus, while my past sentiments still ring true – diabetes, as always, is about we, the patients – diabetes is becoming something much more than that. I hesitate to put a single label on it – but I am excited by the prospect of new beginnings.
On that note, we are also planning some big changes for diaTribe in 2010 - but we need your help. With our annual readers' survey, we would like to get your input on what could make diaTribe better and more useful for you. Look for the survey in your email inbox in the next weeks - we would greatly appreciate your insight!
Cheers to a New Year,
Kelly L. Close
