Type 1 Diabetes Persuasive Essay

The future cure for Type 1 Diabetes sufferers appears to lie in the hands of the drug companies. While there are people that feel the holdup is that there is no benefit to finding the cure for the extremely profitable disease, others feel that finding the cure would bring such “prestige and honor” (Blass) that there is no way the pharmaceutical companies would deliberately stand in the way. Any way you look at it, Diabetes is one of the leading causes of death in America. According to the American Diabetes Association, 1.25 million adults and children are currently living with Type 1 Diabetes and desperately awaiting a cure. (Ellyatt) Type 1 Diabetes is when the body completely loses its ability to make insulin. It is considered a permanent condition with no cure. Whereas Type 1 is considered the less common form, it still burdens its sufferers with a lifetime of health risks and possible

There are a wide variety of products on the market, including: long, short, and fast acting insulin, blood sugar monitors, syringes, and lancets. Maintaining a healthy diet is also extremely important. Unfortunately, there is no current treatment on the market that allows a Type 1 Diabetic to control their blood sugar levels 100%. “Currently, public funding is insufficient for both research and treatment and the way in which research is financed in this country discourages the kind of out-of-the-box thinking that some experts believe might lead to a cure” (Sklaroff). The market alone cannot push medical development. “When the market alone can’t drive medical advancements, philanthropy plays a critical role for those affected by acute and chronic diseases” (Panzirer). It is philanthropy, generous donations of money to the cause, that will allow scientists to move forward. The bionic pancreas is an example of a privately funded