BOSTON (Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Doctors have turned back the clock more than
100 years to rediscover a drug that can help the more than 15 million people in
the United States with type 2 diabetes. It's one drug that may provide twice the
relief.
Mary Ann Provost's pain from diabetes and arthritis nearly stopped her from
suiting up for one of her favorite activities.
"I was seriously doubting whether I was going to do any golf," she told Ivanhoe.
Now doctors believe relief may be found in these pills.
"I think it's a miracle drug," Provost said. "I really do."
The drug called salsalate is currently approved to treat joint pain, but
researchers say it may have a dual purpose for those with type 2 diabetes.
"We've shown that using the drug for short periods of time can lower blood
sugars both before people eat and after they eat and their average blood sugar
measurements over time," Allison Goldfine, M.D., clinical research head at the
Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, Mass., explained to Ivanhoe.
Doctors say just like it reduces inflammation in joints, salsalate does the same
in other tissues. That in turn, may lower blood sugar levels in people with type
2 diabetes.
After a little more digging, doctors realized they had landed on a path that was
forged more than 100 years ago. A medical journal dating back to 1876 reported
using salicylate, the simple form of salsalate, to treat a patient with
diabetes.
"It's one of those rare moments in doing science where we actually can say, 'Ah,
ha! We made a discovery!' There's something new here," Steven Shoelson, M.D.,
Ph.D., a medical researcher at Joslin Diabetes Center said.
Provost's blood sugar levels are stable and healthy and her arthritis is under
control.
"I'm a different person," she described.
Doctors say salsalate has a good safety profile and is inexpensive. Broader
studies on the drug were just completed in 13 states. Researchers plan to
release the findings in a couple of months. A much larger trial is planned for
later this year and will be conducted at 20 sites across the nation.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
TINSAL-T2D Study
http://www.tinsal-t2d.org
