ients who have kidney failure due to the diabetes. Since the pancreas lies up against one of the kidneys, it is technically possible to transplant the two organs together, simultaneously. But, this operation has only ever been attempted a few times. A possibly more promising hope for the future is transplanting just the islet cells. They could be injected into the abdomen without any surgery. The problem is how to stop the body from recognizing them as foreign cells and trying to destroy them. Tiny jelly-like beads have been developed to protect the islet cells from white blood cells, which would otherwise attack the islet cells and gobble them up. But, the insulin can still seep out through the beads. Normally the level of glucose in the body rises after a person eats a meal. This rise in blood glucose stimulates the beta cells to release insulin. Insulin then either helps body cells take up glucose to use as energy or promotes the conversation of glucose to fat, which are used by the cells later. Some glucose maybe stored in the liver this is called glycogen. Then the level of glucose drops (usually several hours after the meal has been eaten), other cells in the pancreas stimulate the conversion of glycogen to glucose and its release into the bloodstream. In this way, the level of glucose in the bloodstream stays relatively constant until the next meal is eaten. The body tends to deal with this imbalance by filtering out excess glucose throughout the kidneys, resulting in high levels of sugar in the urine. As glucose level rises the kidneys over-whelmed and don’t function normally. They lose their ability to absorb much water the result is frequent urination. This is commonly the earliest sign of diabetes. It is often followed by unquenchable thirst as the body tries to regain the lost fluids. It often seems that more fluid comes out than went in. The name “diabetes mellitus” describes two striking symptoms of disea...
