A Little Bit at a Time

A diabetic man developed a serious problem.

Tests showed that not only was he allergic to his own medication, but also to another four types - and it was the insulin molecule itself that was causing the problems.

It didn't look good, so he took matters into his own hands.

Doctors painted a gloomy picture about Cliff's future, as it was clear the treatments he could take would not completely control his diabetes.

Determined not to give up, he started to do his own internet research and found that Dr Tahseen Chowdhury at Barts and the London Centre for Diabetes had treated difficult cases like his own.

Dr Chowdhury tried out a number of therapies, including a modified insulin but they failed.
Then he hit upon using an insulin pump to put tiny amounts of the drug into Cliff's body every three minutes. "The amount was so small I did not get the reaction," said Cliff.

He got the idea the same way the patient found him.

Dr Chowdhury said Cliff's case had been a real challenge and he had turned to the internet as part of his search for an answer on how to proceed with his patient. "I had found one report of a case which was similar to his that had been treated with a pump with moderate success."