Twenty-two years

Twenty-two years ago today, I was pulled from 9th grade gym class at Highland High School and made my way to Primary Children's Hospital in Salt Lake City, where I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes.  I started using Regular and NPH insulin and learned how to test my blood sugar on an early model One Touch meter.  It took me fifteen minutes to poke my finger the first time.  I continued on the cross country team and since then I have run twelve marathons, qualified for and run the Boston Marathon, completed four Ironman triathlons, and competed in about 30 road bike races.  I would give anything to be able to go just one mile without diabetes.  Today I am raising money for a cure for type 1 diabetes with the JDRF for all of us with type 1 diabetes and in honor of those who have been taken from us too soon.  Please donate generously if you are able; any amount is welcome.  Donations can be made at my page at http://ride.jdrf.org/rider.cfm?id=9740.

Riding Again

Earlier this year, when in Wisconsin for the funeral of Jesse Alswager, I decided that I would like to join Jesse's mom, Michelle, as she and a number of friends chose to honor him by riding at the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's Ride to Cure Diabetes in Death Valley, California, on October 16, 2010.  Since then I have become aware of similar stories of great loss, including the deaths of several young people close in age to Jesse.  I have tried to live with a philosophy that diabetes is more of an inconvenience than a death sentence; still, these heart-wrenching events have touched me and reminded me that insulin and all of our wonderful technological advances still allow too many to slip away.  It is still hard for me to reconcile these events, knowing that I share the same condition.

After my accident at the velodrome in May, I wasn't sure what the next few months would hold, and whether I would be able to continue with my plans for Death Valley.  The collarbone surgery was successful, but I would need to take blood thinners (warfarin) for up to 6 months to help treat three clots that had formed in my lungs.  The scare tactics from my physicians were pretty effective and I felt discouraged that I would not be riding for the rest of 2010.  Slowly, though, I was connected with other athletes on warfarin and realized that some riding would be okay.  A month after the crash, I was elated to be out riding again.  I chose the safest routes I knew, and backed off a little on the descents and when approaching intersections.  I spent more time indoors on the rollers, and also picked up swimming and running again.  Road racing and other large group rides were out of the question.  But, fortunately, my time on the warfarin was shortened to just three months, and I am happy to now be riding warfarin-free as of this past weekend.  (This experience has given me an appreciation for those who must remain on warfarin for life--a topic for another post.)

I decided to continue with my plans to ride in memory of Jesse, Trent, and all the other people whose lives have been shortened by this disease.  I will also ride in support of their families.  Additionally, I will ride to honor those who currently face a daily struggle due to serious complications of diabetes.  I am fortunate and grateful to be in good health and to be able to pursue my dreams.  Finding a cure is the best way to ensure that all people with type 1 diabetes can continue on that same path.

I would be touched by your donation.  If you are able to donate, please go to my JDRF page here.  Any amount is helpful and welcome, and you can donate anonymously if you would like.

Lucky Mice! Research News Flash

It is another good day for the NOD mouse. (The NOD mouse is used as an animal model of type 1 diabetes.) In a study reported in today's issue of New Scientist and re-quoted by the BBC, scientists Terry Strom and colleagues at Harvard Medical School in Boston have been able to not only halt the damaging immune attack on the beta cells, but by adding a 4th drug to their cocktail, have also seen a resulting increase in the number of insulin-producing beta cells. The article suggests that these mice were effectively "cured" of diabetes. In previous experiments, they were able to halt the immune attack but concluded that the restoration of euglycemia (i.e., normal blood sugar) was due to the ability of remaining beta cells to produce insulin. In this new study, which was presented by Strom last week in Berlin, Germany at the International Conference on New Trends in Immunosuppression and Immunotherapy, mice were administered the same cocktail of drugs as before, plus another enzyme, alpha 1 anti-trypsin, which has a role in reducing inflammation. Fifty days after treatment, an increase in the number of insulin-producing beta cells was seen. The article quotes Strom as saying that it is too early to know whether the increase was due to existing beta cells producing insulin again or due to generation of new beta cells. Clinical trials are planned. The previous research study was funded by the JDRF and NIH but it was not reported who supported this current study.

(By the way, I paid for a subscription so I could read the whole article, but it doesn't say a whole lot more than the BBC article. I guess we'll have to wait for Strom to get his paper on this published.)

Research Newsflash: "β Cells Can Be Generated from Endogenous Progenitors in Injured Adult Mouse Pancreas"

An article in the January 25, 2008, issue of Cell describes research showing that progenitor beta cells exist in the mouse pancreas and that, when prompted by injury to the pancreas, the cells respond by growing and producing insulin. The authors are all associated with the JDRF Center for Beta Cell Therapy in Diabetes in Brussels, Belgium. (Yay, JDRF!) Read the original article or a summary at ScienceDaily for more info. If they find that this is also true for humans, it will be a very exciting discovery with many implications.

Thanks for the Ride

Thank you to those who made it possible for me to participate in the September 2007 Ride to Cure Diabetes in Whitefish, Montana. While raising money for the JDRF was my primary reason for deciding to do the ride, the weekend far surpassed my expectations. Not only was I treated to explore and ride in one of the country's most scenic and peaceful locations, for a few days the burden of this disease was lifted and I was reminded that it is, in fact, possible for me to live better with diabetes. Unlike other athletic events, which also motivate and challenge me, the Ride brings people together with a common goal: to cure diabetes. It was also the first event where the medical tent at the end was never used. I met many friends with diabetes themselves or who have loved ones with diabetes. And some decided to ride just because the location was so spectacular. I can certainly appreciate that. Meeting other athletically-minded type 1's helped me to realize that we often share the same frustrations. I also realized that, despite my self-criticism, I have actually managed to learn quite a bit about how to manage my BG's while exercising.

I had a few other self-realizations while chatting with others:
1. I am so averse to having low BG's while exercising that I often keep my blood sugar higher than necessary. During the ride, I learned that I could keep my exercise BG lower, and have been experimenting with increasing the amount of insulin I take during exercise since then.
2. I put a lot of energy into managing my BG's during exercise and was, for example, able to avoid low blood sugar for almost 15 hours during the Ironman. Sometimes, it seems too hard to muster up the energy for the rest of the time. But by changing a few small things, I can improve my diabetes control, and the way I feel, even when I am not exercising.
3. I used to have excellent control. I was probably the most "compliant" teenager there ever was. I had a hard time adjusting my diabetes to my college schedule, and, while starting the pump my sophomore year gave me flexibility, I also slowly changed my behavior because of it. Being at the JDRF ride, and seeing other type 1's, reminded me of how I used to be--more strict--and I finally accepted that some of my difficulties do not arise from an inability to master the art of pumping, but in the types and timing of the food I eat.

And guess what? My A1c (measure of average blood glucose over ~2 months) went down a significant 0.6% since the end of August. A lower A1c means a smaller chance of most complications as the years go on, and better health in the short-term, too.

Some pictures from the weekend...

Here I am with Anne Marie, whose daughter has type 1 diabetes. This was her first JDRF Ride. She also convinced her friend Joe to raise money and ride. We had a nice paceline going for part of the first loop.

The ride consisted of 3 loops: Star Meadow, Whitefish Lake, and Northfork. Star Meadow Loop was the longest (~50 miles) and had the steepest climbs. It was also the coldest--in the 30's at the turnaround point. I was wearing plenty of warm gear and didn't chill out too much. A day or two before the ride, there was a report of some 10 grizzly bears being relocated from rural areas in the vicinity (not sure how close). They said the huckleberry season was particularly bad this year, and that the bears were trying to fatten up before hibernating. Being somewhat grizzly-bear-phobic ever since reading Mark of the Grizzly, I expected to see one lumbering along through Star Meadow, seen here, or maybe even poking a stick through my spokes! Easy dinner.

Here I am with Matt and Andy from Team Type 1 and another friend, Lynn. The 3 of them and many others stuck around at the finish, waiting for the last of the riders to pull through. Oh did I mention that the "century" was actually 118 miles? I was happy that I made it without having done many long rides lately. Early in the ride, the TT1 guys and a friend and I rode 5 abreast on one of the country roads. We decided that we were technically riding "single file" in a different sense. I enjoyed riding with them and am pretty sure my heart rate was at least 20-30 bpm faster than any of theirs! It was exhilarating. It was also interesting to hear about their strategy (which is similar to other relay teams' strategies) for winning RAAM. Apparently, they would take turns riding very short intervals at or near all-out intensity. It sounds pretty exhausting for everyone involved.

I believe Carlos, above, was the last rider who did the full 118 miles to finish. Several years ago, he nearly lost his infant son when doctors were slow to diagnose type 1 diabetes. I was shocked that the obvious symptoms did not quickly lead to what could have been a 5-second diagnosis (with a BG check). His son was near death when doctors finally realized what was going on. At that time, Carlos felt like he "had to do something," and signed up for his first ride. His son is now biking himself, and proud of his dad for doing this for him. I think his expression sums up the whole day--triumph that we had all been able to enjoy such spectacular surroundings & conditions, support, and friendships, and that we had moved $700,000 closer to a cure.

Thank you to all those who supported me. It turned out to be much more than just a ride.