Discussion Artificial pancreas pump as shown on BBC One Show

[GuidingSenses]

Hi
I’m type 1.5 only 2 years in.
Just watched bbc programme The One Show where a little girl was the first to be NHS prescribed an Artificial Pancreas.
Does anyone know if this amazing kit will be available to others?
It seemed to consist of a pump, sensor but no injecting as the artificial pancreas sensed when you needed insulin and switched off when you didn’t, just like a real pancreas!

 

[becca59]

They are conducting trials at the moment up and down the country across all ages. Unfortunately I think we are a long way off just anyone getting it. Even more unlikely if not already prescribed a pump. Let’s face it not everyone is eligible for a Libre yet.

 

[bmcm]

Just to say there are alternatives to Libre. I'm using medtronic 780g pump on guardian 4 sensor and it's amazing, I have very few hypos now and in target 80%.

 

[joanne75]

Just to say there are alternatives to Libre. I'm using medtronic 780g pump on guardian 4 sensor and it's amazing, I have very few hypos now and in target 80%.

Hi
Can you give me your experience of the 780g I have the choice to swap from Omnipod to it. The only thing that is tempting me is the partial loop availability with the guardian 4, however they won’t find me for the sensors.

 

[NicoleC1971]

I am also on an NHS closed loop system so I am unsure how this is different from an artificial pancreas.
Mine measures every 5 minutes and makes small adjustments' within set parameters to manage me up or down into range. It cannot cope with more than 30g carb I'd say though so I do have to bolus in the normal way. It is great for turning off insulin in good time and to keeping me in a higher range when I am doing exercise.

From what I recall of the Cambridge pump if it is the same one as that project, it also required diligent bolusing. So perhaps 'artificial pancreas' is an over sell but my system has been a game changer for me certainly - reducing hBq1c dramatically and dodging hypos.
At present the exogenous insulin still acts differently to what our bodies produce and my pump is only as good as the ratios etc. I feed into it and it works best when I limit carbs which suits me in any case.

 

[david4503]

I am also on an NHS closed loop system so I am unsure how this is different from an artificial pancreas.

The original idea or dream of the artificial pancreas was very straightforward — a very dependable little gadget that would do practically everything a real pancreas does to control blood sugar and with minimal maintenance. Just fill up the insulin reservoir, make sure the battery is working and you’re done. No muss, no fuss. Also, there was to be an implantable version, so nothing to carry around, no tubing of any kind to worry about.

Was this ever realistic? Who knows? But today’s closed-loop systems, good as they may be, still don’t do what a real pancreas does. Will the artificial pancreas now being developed fall short of the dream? Probably but it should still be a big step forward.

 

[NicoleC1971]

The original idea or dream of the artificial pancreas was very straightforward — a very dependable little gadget that would do practically everything a real pancreas does to control blood sugar and with minimal maintenance. Just fill up the insulin reservoir, make sure the battery is working and you’re done. No muss, no fuss. Also, there was to be an implantable version, so nothing to carry around, no tubing of any kind to worry about.

Was this ever realistic? Who knows? But today’s closed-loop systems, good as they may be, still don’t do what a real pancreas does. Will the artificial pancreas now being developed fall short of the dream? Probably but it should still be a big step forward.

Id say the major issue about anything that uses genetically made insulin is that it does not act in the same way as the endogenous kind which is something to do with the biomechanics of the cell. Even with everything you describe in place the closed loop system cannot get on top of an unexpected spike and tends to lag behind even if you've dosed perfectly (20 minutes before and carb counted). Still a lot better than anything I have had before though.

 

[david4503]

Id say the major issue about anything that uses genetically made insulin is that it does not act in the same way as the endogenous kind which is something to do with the biomechanics of the cell. Even with everything you describe in place the closed loop system cannot get on top of an unexpected spike and tends to lag behind even if you've dosed perfectly (20 minutes before and carb counted). Still a lot better than anything I have had before though.

Maybe the artificial pancreas is where this new super-rapid-acting insulin could come in handy. Granted, it still wouldn’t be able to make corrections quite as fast as a healthy pancreas but it could come close. That’s assuming the hardware and software was also up to the challenge.

 

[EllieM]

That’s assuming the hardware and software was also up to the challenge.

I must admit to some (possibly unjustified) fear that a software/hardware system may malfunction and flood me with insulin. Even my dexcom occasionally misreads....

 

[david4503]

I must admit to some (possibly unjustified) fear that a software/hardware system may malfunction and flood me with insulin. Even my dexcom occasionally misreads....

Not unjustified at all. Perfectly justified, IMO. It would take some doing to get everyone to trust an artificial pancreas. TBH, I don’t feel much like trusting even a pump or CGM. What I’m using is, speaking objectively and according to documented facts, more trustworthy. I wouldn’t be the first on my block to get an artificial pancreas, but I probably would at some point, once I was reasonably sure of its safety.

 

[EllieM]

I wouldn’t be the first on my block to get an artificial pancreas, but I probably would at some point, once I was reasonably sure of its safety.

I've been promised "a cure in ten years" for the last 50, so am somewhat sceptical, and I have my doubts that any true cure will be around in my lifetime. But modern technology has transformed my diabetic control compared to my pre-glucometer days, so maybe my lifetime will be long enough to benefit.... I certainly feel mildly optimistic for today's newly diagnosed young T1s.

 

[david4503]

They told you ten? That’s a pretty bold prediction. I was told 20 a few times. I figure that 20 was the designated sweet spot. Not so far away that you might lose hope, not so close that you would be disappointed if and when the cure didn’t happen. 20 seemed possible BITD. You could tell people were starting to lose faith when the covers on the ADA’s Diabetes Forecast magazine shifted from research to food advice.