NEWS
The University of Dundee has been awarded
a £7million grant from the National Institute of
Health Research Global Health programme
to establish a major new Scotland-India
clinical partnership to combat diabetes.
The NIHR Global Health Research Unit on
Diabetes Outcomes Research project will see
Dundee's world-leading expertise in the use
of medical records to deliver improved care in
diabetes `twinned' with the large patient data
set (covering over 400,000 Indian diabetic
patients) collected by Dr Mohan's Diabetes
Specialities Centres, the largest clinical
network of diabetes care in India.
Diabetes in India and Scotland will be
compared and contrasted to determine
the common and specific problems in
both countries, with the aim of providing
an improvement in health and reduction in
health inequalities in India and Scotland.
The Dundee project is one of 33 research
units and groups sharing over £120 million
PARTNERSHIP TO TACKLE DIABETES
of funding for Global Health Research
announced by the Department of Health.
"Diabetes is a major problem in India
with 1 in 12 people affected, amounting
to 69 million individuals currently, which
is more than the entire UK population,"
says Professor Colin Palmer (right),
Chair of Pharmacogenomics at the
University of Dundee and lead for the
new research unit. "With increasing
economic development and lifestyle
changes those numbers are rapidly
increasing. Yet current knowledge
on how diabetes develops, how
patients respond to medications and
the causes of medical complications
that arise are largely derived from
studies on white European ancestry
populations. This is despite the fact
that diabetes in Europeans is very
different to diabetes in South Asians.
We need to understand more about
process for the Johnson & Johnson
Diabetes Care Companies announced in
January 2017, Johnson & Johnson is also
continuing to evaluate potential strategic
options for LifeScan, Inc., a world leader
in blood glucose monitoring with the
OneTouch brand of products, and also the
Calibra brand of insulin delivery devices.
*Due to the consultative nature of the
global withdrawal of Animas from the
insulin pump arena, it is not possible to
be specific about a date on this. However,
we will report again as soon as anything
further is known.
www.animascorp.co.uk
diabetes in different populations. There is
an urgent need for a large in-depth study
of the specific causes and consequences
of diabetes in India in order to identify
different subtypes of diabetes that exist
in India and understand how best to
manage each subtype. This project will
address that."
Nearly 170,000 people have already
signed up to SHARE to date and are
helping diabetes research in Scotland.
People in Scotland can contribute
directly to this research by signing up on
www.registerforshare.org.
ANIMAS EXITS INSULIN
PUMP MARKET GLOBALLY
According to an announcement made
by the company on 5th October, Animas
Corporation is to close operations and
exit the insulin pump market in the US
and Canada immediately. The company
is to work with Medtronic as a partner-ofchoice to help ensure
a smooth transition
for patients on insulin pumps to Medtronic's
products.
The company will be exiting the insulin
pump market globally - including the UK -
at a future date, yet to be specified. Existing
users will be contacted directly in due
course, likely within the next few months*.
According to a report on Medtronic's
US website, "Animas will close its pump
business. As Animas' partner-of-choice for
this transition, our Medtronic team is ready
to help. We know that when it comes to your
diabetes management needs, it's a very
personal decision and our experienced
team is here to support you through
every step in the process."
Animas's announcement further
states, "Animas has discontinued the
sale of all Animas Vibe and OneTouch
Ping insulin pumps in the US and
Canada, effective immediately. A
decision and timing to exit countries
outside of the US and Canada is
subject to completing consultation
with relevant works councils. For the
patients, caregivers and healthcare
providers outside of the US and Canada
who currently use Animas pumps and
products, Animas will continue to sell
pumps and operate as usual.
As part of the strategic review
Further information:
Call the Animas Vibe Careline
for more information if you
have concerns.
0800 055 6606 in the UK
or 1800 812 715 in ROI.