JDRF seeks $15M in funding for research
August 26, 2020
As 2021 draws near, we move closer to an important milestone that changed and aided the type 1 diabetes (T1D) community in an enormous way – the 100th year of insulin.
In the past, treatment for T1D meant restricting calories, carbs and certain foods altogether to nearly the point of starvation. Life for people with type 1 diabetes before insulin was short and dreadful – typically two years for adults and a year for children– ending in blindness, loss of limbs, kidney failure, heart attack or stroke. Banting House in London describes diabetes before insulin as a “death sentence.” The discovery of insulin in 1921 by Canadians Sir Frederick J. Banting and Dr. Charles Best made it possible to manage diabetes and is often described as Canada’s gift to the world – saving the lives of up to 200 million people globally.
As we prepare to mark the 100th anniversary of this life-saving drug, we know that research and clinical trials cannot stop. That is why we are asking the government to make a commitment to move beyond insulin and towards prevention and cures by committing to renew crucial funds for T1D research.
In 2017, the government committed $15 million to a new Partnership to Defeat Diabetes between JDRF and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), in order to improve the lives of Canadians with T1D and drive efforts to find a cure. Matched with $15 million from JDRF, this funding will support at least 11 high impact, internationally relevant projects. Five projects are currently underway and six more commence next year.
This year, our 2021 Federal pre-budget submission includes three recommendations, including the renewal of funds with the Canadian government in order to remain the world leader in T1D clinical trials, transnational research and tools to prevent, treat and ultimately cure T1D.
Funding for this partnership will include:
- Prevention of diabetes, especially in children and youth;
- Early treatment of diabetes, thereby delaying its progression and reducing the risk of complications;
- Accelerating development of diabetes device technology to enable automated insulin delivery, including in special populations;
- Leveraging data using various approaches, such as artificial intelligence, to drive development of personalized treatment of diabetes and its complications.
We hope to have an opportunity to testify in front of the Standing committee on Finance’s pre-budget consultations committee, and these same recommendations will be relayed to MPs and senators as part of this year’s 2020 Kids for a Cure home Edition.
While we send over 30 delegates to speak to decision-makers in our Kids For a Cure Lobby Day Home Edition, you can take part in it too by speaking out about the need to accelerate the pace of research through funding from our federal government. Share your message on social using #KidsForACure2020 and tell lawmakers why this is important! There is strength in numbers, and we know that together, we can turn type one into type none.
