The world's largest diabetes awareness campaign has put the disease into focus again.
In the central Israeli town of Ness Ziona, a breakthrough diabetes treatment — although still in its pre-clinical phase — looks promising.
"What we are talking about now is an artificial pancreas made of real human cells," says Prof. Ariel Revel, medical director at Kadimastem.
The professor says he is working on a cure, not a treatment, using human cells that act exactly like the original human pancreas. It is currently sitting in the pre-clinical phase pending research into a new drug application.
"We are able in our new company to produce those cells which originated from stem cells and stem cells are derived from human embryos and can be taken to any cell in the body," Revel says.
"Access to health care is the number one factor for a healthy life with diabetes," he continues.
Better access to quality diabetes education and health care is the theme of this year's diabetes campaign — global awareness of diabetes happens each year in November on the same day with World Diabetes Day taking place annually on November 14.
Insulin must be widely available and can get expensive, creating a barrier to proper treatment of the condition, Revel notes.
Over 463 million people are living with diabetes around the world. In 2019, diabetes caused 4.2 million deaths. It is projected that by 2045, up to 700 million adults will be diagnosed with the condition. It's also a leading cause of cardiovascular disease, blindness, kidney failure and even lower limb amputation.