After one year, 10 of 12 people no longer required insulin injections.
In a groundbreaking development for the treatment of severe type 1 diabetes, a single infusion of stem cells has reportedly cured 10 out of 12 patients, allowing them to live without insulin for a year.
This promising treatment, known as zimislecel and developed by Vertex Pharmaceuticals in Boston, offers a glimmer of hope for those who have battled this chronic condition. While two patients still require insulin, they are now managing with significantly reduced doses.
Medical professionals in the field are highly encouraged by the prospects of the treatment. They say that these results raise exciting questions about the future of diabetes treatment and the possibility of a more permanent solution for the millions of individuals living with the disease.
According to reporting by The New York Times, zimislecel involves transforming stem cells into pancreatic islet cells, which are essential for regulating blood sugar levels in the body. Once these newly created islet cells are infused into patients, they find a new home in the liver, where they can begin their critical work of insulin production.
Doctors are excited about the mechanism behind this experimental treatment and the fact that these cells can successfully replace damaged or non-functional islet cells in patients with type 1 diabetes. They believe this represents a major leap forward in regenerative medicine, as it demonstrates not only the versatility of stem cells but also their ability to restore normal physiological functions that many had long thought were permanently lost for those living with the disease.
“It’s trailblazing work,” said Dr. Mark Anderson, professor and director of the diabetes center at the University of California in San Francisco, in an interview with The Times. “Being free of insulin is life changing.”
The results of this study were presented last Friday at the American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting and published in The New England Journal of Medicine. Dr. Anderson was not involved in the research.
Vertex Pharmaceuticals will not share the price of the new treatment until it gets approval from the FDA. This is a typical approach that companies use to understand the rules and how the market will react before deciding on a price. By waiting to reveal the cost, Vertex hopes to avoid negative reactions or misunderstandings about how affordable it will be and its potential impact on patients and healthcare providers.
In a recent statement, a spokesperson for Vertex highlighted an important point about zimislecel and its treatment for type 1 diabetes: the current understanding of its effectiveness is based solely on the specific group of individuals studied in the clinical trials. This detail is crucial because although type 1 diabetes affects around two million Americans, the journey of living with it is complex for each individual and comes with its own set of unique challenges. So, while the trial results are promising, it remains key for patients and health care providers to stay informed and engaged with the latest developments.
According to the CDC, type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition where the immune system attacks insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas, requiring lifelong insulin injections. Unlike type 2 diabetes, which is often linked to lifestyle and appears later in life, type 1 can develop at any age and requires ongoing care. Patients need to regularly check their blood sugar levels to prevent serious long-term health problems like harm to the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves if their levels are consistently high. But at the same time, if their blood sugar levels drop too low, they might feel shaky, faint orhave seizures.
The report also highlights that the patients in the study are part of the estimated 30% who experience a complication of type 1 diabetes called hypoglycemic unawareness. This means they do not get the usual warning signs, like shaking or sweating, when their blood sugar levels drop dangerously low. Instead, they can suddenly faint, have seizures, or even die.
Dr. Trevor Reichman, who leads the pancreas and islet transplant program at University Health Network in Toronto and is the study’s first author, described it as a scary way to live.
“You worry all day every day where your glucose is and what you eat and when you exercise,” he said.
In the study, patients started using less insulin just a few months after receiving new islet cells. Most of them no longer needed insulin at around six months. In addition, their low blood sugar episodes disappeared within the first 90 days of treatment.
If the study continues to show good results, Vertex plans to apply to the Food and Drug Administration next year.
It’s also important to note that during the trial, patients had to take medication to prevent their immune systems from attacking the new cells. This could lead to a greater risk of infections and, over time, might increase the likelihood of developing cancer. Given this, experts strongly agree that additional work is necessary.
ADA is here and the Breakthrough T1D team is on site! Day one came with some very exciting news from Vertex on the trials surrounding their drug Zimislecel, also known as VX880. Our Chief Scientific Officer, Dr. Sanjoy Dutta, breaks down the latest updates on where the trial… pic.twitter.com/y9VxJMLtOq
— Breakthrough T1D (@BreakthroughT1D) June 21, 2025
Dr. Irl B. Hirsch, a diabetes expert at the University of Washington who was not part of the study, stated, “The argument is this immunosuppression is not as dangerous as what we typically use for kidneys, hearts and lungs, but we won’t know that definitely for many years.”
Still, as more data becomes available, specialists believe these findings could significantly influence diabetes treatment, potentially moving it from lifelong management to discovering possible cures.
While they stress the need for more research and larger clinical trials to confirm these findings and understand their long-term effects, the encouraging results seen in this small group of patients offer hope for a future where type 1 diabetes could be easier to manage instead of being a debilitating condition.
