U.S. Senators Joseph Lieberman and Susan Collins, Chairman and Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee, held a hearing today to examine the devastating impact that juvenile diabetes has had on the estimated three million American children and their families affected with the disease. This was the sixth year that the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs committee, in cooperation with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) has hosted the “Children’s Congress” which brings together juvenile diabetes sufferers from every state in the country and from around the world to tell Congress what it’s like to have diabetes, just how serious it is, and why it is so important that we fund the research necessary to find a cure.
This year’s hearing, titled “Transforming Lives Through Diabetes Research” included children from all 50 states, and testimony from Actor Kevin Kline, an advocate for juvenile diabetes research, Dr. Griffin P.Rodgers, Director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases at the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Charles Zimliki, Chairman of the Artificial Pancreas Critical Path Initiative at the Food and Drug Administration.
“In a city and government in which too little happens these days, diabetes research is a cause that enables us to come together and celebrate the remarkable medical research and breakthroughs that have been made,” said Senator Lieberman. “The children in this room show us how well they are doing and make us want to work harder to increase federal funding to make sure, in their lifetimes, there is a cure.”
Senator Collins, who chaired the hearing, is the co-chair and founder of the Senate Diabetes Caucus and has been recognized as a champion for her efforts to increase federal funding for research that will lead to better treatments and a cure for diabetes.
“As the founder and Co-Chair of the Senate Diabetes Caucus, I have learned a lot about this disease and the difficulties and heartbreak that it causes for so many American families as they await a cure,” said Senator Collins. “Diabetes is a life-long condition that does not discriminate. It affects people of every age, race and nationality. It is the leading cause of kidney failure, blindness in adults and amputations not related to injury.
“Of particular concern is the fact that the incidence of type 1 diabetes is increasing, particularly in children under the age of four. While the discovery of insulin was a landmark breakthrough in the treatment of diabetes, it is not a cure. People with type 1 diabetes face the constant threat of developing life-threatening complications, as well as a reduction in their quality of life.
“But, advances in technology, like continuous glucose monitors, are helping patients control their blood glucose levels. And, we are also moving closer to our goal of an artificial pancreas which would revolutionize diabetes care. The artificial pancreas would link two existing technologies -- the insulin pump and the continuous glucose monitor – with sophisticated computer software to provide just the right amount of insulin at just the right time. The FDA has so far played a pivotal role in moving this research forward by approving clinical trials in hospital settings and making the artificial pancreas one of its Critical Path initiatives and I look forward to hearing more about what the agency is doing to advance this promising new technology,” Senator Collins concluded.
Actor Kevin Kline, an advocate for juvenile diabetes research, talked about new therapies and treatments and praised the important role that parents and caretakers play in managing juvenile diabetes. One of the new therapies he discussed has been shown to not only slow diabetic eye disease, but improve the vision of those affected. Mr. Kline then called on the FDA, urging them to move forward with the promising new artificial pancreas technology.
Caroline Jacobs, a 14-year old girl from Shapleigh, Maine who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was 10-years old, discussed how diabetes changed her life and how she was forced her to grow up more quickly than other children because of the seriousness of her disease and the daily steps she has to take to stay healthy. Caroline too called on the FDA to move forward on the next steps relating to the artificial pancreas, as this technology would make her diabetes management much easier and would help relieve the burden diabetes takes on her parents.
Dr. Griffin Rodgers testified on the advances of type 1 diabetes research including several research trials that have led to the development of new insights and improvements in diabetes care and therapy and have given people with type 1 diabetes longer, healthier lives freer from complications. Dr. Charles Zimliki testified on the new artificial pancreas system and what the FDA’s role is in the development of this critical and potentially life-changing device. Just this Monday, as Dr. Zimliki testified, the FDA took a major step toward advancing the artificial pancreas system by issuing a draft that outlines its expectations for engineering, testing, and, clinical trials for the first generation artificial pancreas system, called the Low Glucose Suspend System. Dr. Zimliki also testified that he expects the FDA to issue draft guidance for a fully functional artificial pancreas system by December of this year.
Since Senator Collins founded the Senate Diabetes Caucus, funding for diabetes research has more than tripled from $319 million in 1997 to more than a billion dollars this year. Last year, Senator Collins was able to pass legislation to extend the Special Diabetes Program, which represents more than a third of the federal commitment to diabetes research, for two additional years through September of 2013. This critical program provides $150 million a year for juvenile diabetes research, over and above the regular appropriation for diabetes research at the National Institutes of Health. In closing, Senator Collins thanked the children and their families participating in JDRF’s “Children’s Congress” for traveling to Washington and sharing their stores.
“What really motivates me to devote so much energy to this issue is meeting more and more people – like our delegates today and their families – whose lives have been forever changed by diabetes,” said Senator Collins. “That is why it is so important that you all have traveled to Washington today to tell your stories. You put a human face on all the statistics. You help us to focus on what Congress can do to better understand and ultimately conquer this terrible disease.”
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