China's armed forces have given the green light to the clinical use of their own insulin-producing cell transplant technology, which holds out the hope for type one diabetics of being able to dispense with insulin injections.

The first transplant of pancreatic islet cells and first simultaneous transplant of pancreatic islet cells and kidneys were approved after long-term studies of patients, the Health Bureau of the PLA Logistics Department announced.

Four of the patients had accepted pancreatic islet cell transplants, two took the simultaneous transplants, and one had the cell transplant after the kidney transplant. The cells, taken from deceased donors, are injected into the pancreas. The islet cell transplants have freed or partly freed all of the patients from insulin injections.

The first transplant of pancreatic islet cells was carried out in January 2003 and the first simultaneous kidney and cell transplant in June 2005.

World Health Organization figures show China has 50 million diabetics, ranking second in the world in terms of incidence of the disease. About 10 percent are type one. The number of diabetics increases by 3,000 every day in China and will reach 100 million by 2010.

Source:佚名