NZSSD Press Release - 22 May 2008
The New Zealand Society for the Study of Diabetes (NZSSD) Executive has concerns regarding several comments made in the Television New Zealand “Close Up” programme entitled “Miracle Cure?” screened on Tuesday 20th May 2008.
NZSSD represents health professionals involved in diabetes care and is the national advisory body on scientific and clinical diabetes treatment and standards. It also provides the national reference source on diabetes in New Zealand [1].
The NZSSD Executive acknowledges that Type 1 diabetes is a serious disease that requires significant input from the person with the disease. It can lead to disruption of the person’s life and for some people can lead to long-term complications such as eye, kidney, and heart disease.
Xenotransplantation (in this instance transplantation of pig insulin producing cells into humans) offers a potentially important therapeutic option for people with Type 1 diabetes. NZSSD is, in principle, supportive of future xenotransplantation clinical trials in humans, so long as recognised scientific processes are followed. This includes good evidence from animal studies in the first instance, which clearly indicates that expected benefit is deemed to significantly exceed any potential risk(s), and that appropriate independent regulatory oversight of such clinical trials is in place [2].
Scientifically proven treatment strategies currently exist that have vastly improved the management of this disease and has significantly reduced the risk of future complications. We strongly disagree with the statement made that “current treatment is not very good”. This undermines the efforts made by people with Type 1 diabetes and their health care team in managing their disease.
We are also most concerned about the statement that people with Type 1 diabetes will “die” because of the delay in waiting for the Minister of Health signing off on the proposed xenotransplantation research application. This is an alarmist statement that is entirely without foundation. Such statements will needlessly create an climate of fear amongst people suffering from Type 1 diabetes. The statement implies that currently available treatment strategies are ineffective and that xenotransplantation is life-saving therapy. On the contrary, currently available treatment has proven efficacy, unlike xenotransplantation, which is still in the research arena. Indeed, it was stated in the item that the researchers are “... not sure how long [their xenotransplantation technique] will work or how well it will work”.
NZSSD Executive believes that the Minister of Health has an obligation to consider all relevant aspects of the application before him regarding the proposed xenotransplantation research. We believe it would be incorrect for the Minister to simply rubber-stamp the application without giving the matter serious consideration. As expressed by the International Xenotransplantation Association “The infectious risks associated with xenotransplantation trials are borne not only by study participants but by society at large” [3]. The Minister therefore must be comfortable that the likely benefits of such research significantly outweigh any potential risks before granting the application. In addition, the Minister needs to give cognisance to the recently released International Xenotransplantation Association interim recommendations for clinical islet xenograft trials [3].