Stem Cells and Diabetes

​Adrian Teo Laboratory

STEM CELLS AND DIABETES INFORMATION


  • International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR)
  • Stem Cell Society Singapore (SCSS)                                                                                                                                   
  • American Diabetes Association (ADA)
  • JDRF
  • European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD)
  • Diabetes UK                                                                                                                                                                           
  • The World Diabetes Day is on the 14th November


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 16TH MARCH 2024

  • In 2020, Singapore had the world's highest percentage of kidney failure patients starting treatment, whose diabetes was due to diabetes - at 67 %
  • Much of the increase in kidney failure is caused by an ageing population
  • More men and Malays suffer from kidney failure
  • More men suffer from diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol levels and obesity
  • More Malays have metabolic diseases, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, excess abdominal fat and diabetes, but are less likely to keep up with their mdeical appointments, so their condition worsens


CNA TALKING POINT REPORTED ON DIABETES RISK AND ITS COST TO US ON 22ND OCTOBER 2023

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/watch/talking-point-2023-2024/diabetes-part-1-am-i-risk-3861166


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 10TH APRIL 2022

  • Singapore's next challenge is a pandemic of chronic illnesses like diabetes
  • Singapore leads the world in diabetes-induced kidney failure, with about 5.7 new patients diagnosed with the condition daily
  • There are currently more than 8,500 dialysis patients here


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 26TH OCTOBER 2021

  • Asians are at higher risk of developing diabetes and are also seeing earlier disease onset
  • There is growing evidence that reduced beta cell function may be an early driver in diabetes in Asians, playing a more critical role than insulin sensitivity
  • In Malays, there is inadequate beta cell insulin secretion in response to decreased insulin sensitivity
  • In Indians, beta cell exhaustion occurs at a younger age and the function of these cells declines more rapidly than in people of other ethnicities


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 15TH APRIL 2021

  • Launch of the World Health Organisation's Global Diabetes Compact on Wednesday (April 14)
  • To help countries implement effective programmes to prevent and manage diabetes
  • The total number of diabetics is expected to rise beyond 500 million by 2030
  • In Singapore, more than 400,000 people have diabetes, with one in three expected to develop the condition during their lifetimes
  • The cost burden of diabetes - including medical expenses and loss of productivity - stood at more than $940 million in 2014
  • This is expected to increase to $1.8 billion by 2050

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THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 12TH NOVEMBER 2018

  • Asians with diabetes have triple the risk of heart failure compared with Caucasians
  • In general, about 70 per cent of diabetics get heart failure within five years of being diagnosed with diabetes, although some may not show any symptoms
  • Diabetics are 1.5 times more likely to die from heart failure than a non-diabetic
  • compared with people with no diabetes, diabetic men are 2.4 times more likely to get heart failure while diabetic women face five times the risk


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 21ST OCTOBER 2018

  • Young diabetics are at a higher risk of chronic kidney disease
  • People who have been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes in early adulthood will see their renal function deteriorate up to three times faster
  • Compared with the majority of patients who get diabetes between 40 and 60 years old, those diagnosed before 30 with Type 2 diabetes also face a higher risk of heart disease due to a faster decline in their kidney function
  • One in nine Singaporeans has diabetes, and one in three has a lifetime risk of developing the disease


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 16TH OCTOBER 2017

  • Singaporeans are so prone to diabetes because they cannot produce enough insulin
  • Asians develop diabetes at much lower levels of obesity because they are unable to mount an appropriate insulin response to a glucose load
  • Preliminary findings from Singapore's largest diabetes study show that the main problem in pre-diabetic Asians - those with borderline sugar levels approaching that of diabetics - is their reduced ability to secrete insulin in response to a glucose load, rather than insulin resistance


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 20TH AUGUST 2017

  • 11 % of Singaporeans are diabetic
  • Another 12 to 15 % suffer from pre-diabetes. Of them, one in three will become diabetic within eight years
  • The number of diabetics under 70 in Singapore is expected to rise to 670,000 by 2030 and to one million by 2050
  • Diabetes costs Singapore $1 billion a year and the figure is expected to climb to $1.8 billion by 2050
  • The incidence of diabetes is highest among Indians, with 17.2 % of adults affected. This is followed by Malays (16.6 %) and Chinese (9.7 %)
  • Half of those who have a heart attack; two in five victims of stroke, and two in three with kidney failure in Singapore are also diabetic
  • Every day, four amputations are the result of uncontrolled diabetes


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 8TH APRIL 2016

  • Singapore is No. 2 nation with most diabetics


THE BBC NEWS WEBSITE REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 8TH APRIL 2016

  • Gestational diabetes is common and affects up to 18 in every 100 pregnancies
  • Babies can be at higher risks of obesity and diabetes later in life
  • Women testing positive for gestational diabetes at 28-week stage were twice as likely as other mothers to have an abnormally large foetus
  • Mothers who were obese as well as having gestational diabetes had five times the risk of a large foetus
  • Screening should take place at some point between 24 and 28 weeks, but in practice a lot screen at 28 weeks


THE BBC NEWS WEBSITE REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 6TH APRIL 2016

  • Diabetes cases had nearly quadrupled to 422 million in 2014 from 108 million in 1980
  • High blood sugar levels are a major killer – linked to 3.7 million deaths around the world each year
  • 8.5 % of adults worldwide have diabetes
  • 1.5 million people died as a result of diabetes in 2012
  • 2.2 million additional deaths were caused by higher-than-optimal blood glucose
  • 43 % of these 3.7 million people died before they were 70 years old
  • Diabetes triples the risk of a heart attack and leaves people 20 times more likely to have a leg amputated, as well as increasing the risk of stroke, kidney failure, blindness and complications in pregnancy
  • Diabetes itself is the eighth biggest killer in the world


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 22ND FEBRUARY 2016

  • 34 % of those aged 24 to 35 in 2016 may become diabetic by age 65
  • Diabetes rates have risen from 8.6 % in 1992 to 11.3 % in 2010


THE BBC NEWS WEBSITE REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 17TH AUGUST 2015

  • Diabetes cases soared by 60 %, from 2.1 million to more than 3.3 million people in the UK
  • Diabetes can lead to blindness and amputations, and is a massive drain on NHS resources
  • Diabetes medication now accounts for 10 % of the NHS drugs bill
  • Nearly £869 million was spent on drugs including insulin and metformin as of 2015
  • Diabetes costs the NHS nearly £10 billion a year


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 24TH MAY 2015

  • Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the top cause of blindness among working-age adults in Singapore, causing 
    • About 600 people to be totally blind
    • Over 8000 to lose their sight in one eye
    • 17500 to be visually impaired
  • Three in ten diabetics have diabetic retinopathy
  • Singapore has an estimated 600000 diabetics aged 18 to 69
  • About 180000 have the eye condition
  • Only 30000 have been diagnosed
  • 11 percent of diabetics and 83 percent of those with DR were undiagnosed
  • Nine in ten of those who did not know they had DR were aware they were diabetic
  • The incidence of both DR and the late-stage vision-threatening DR was highest among Indians


As of 2013, Singapore is ranked 10th in the world for the prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), at 12.4 %


Every 6 seconds, a person dies from diabetes


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 2ND OCTOBER 2012

  • By 2050, Singapore may have as many as one million diabetics   
  • Every one in two people, by age 70, will be diabetic
  • Aging and obesity are the two main factors that will drive Singapore’s number of diabetics up in the next 40 years


THE STRAITS TIMES REPORTED THE FOLLOWING ON 24TH FEBRUARY 2012

  • One in three Singaporeans will develop diabetes
  • 11.3 % of those aged 18 to 69 already had the disease in 2010
  • Diabetes is the top cause of blindness in Singapore
  • Diabetes is linked to two limb amputations a day
  • Diabetes is linked to 60 % of kidney failures
  • 46.4 % of people who had their first heart attacks in Singapore were diabetic

DIABETES FACTS