http://www.bakersfield.com/local/story/3513124p-3545877c.html

Rare surgery cured woman of diabetes

Former Type 1 diabetic, whose son is also afflicted, will speak at local chapter gathering Sunday

By LUZ PEÃ‘A, Californian staff writer
e-mail: lpena@bakersfield.com

Wednesday July 23, 2003, 09:10:09 PM

Anne Seidel was a Type 1 diabetic for 35 years. But it wasn't until her 2-year-old son was diagnosed with the disease that she began her search for a cure.

"When my son Charlie turned 2 and was diagnosed with diabetes, I said, 'I'm going to do whatever (possible) to get him cured,'" Seidel, of Dallas, said.

Seidel had experimental surgery that involves transplanting insulin-producing pancreatic cells from a deceased donor.

After being on a waiting list in Minneapolis for two years and after cells from nine other potential matches weren't usable, she was able to receive the first of three cell transplants.

Now, Seidel said, she is no longer diabetic.

"(Not being a diabetic) is the best feeling in the world. It's up there with having children," she said. "I feel like I hadn't bathed in 35 years, and finally I'm washed cleaned."

The procedure is done by transferring healthy pancreatic cells through a catheter into the patient's portal vein in the liver.

In February, Seidel received 320,000 cells, but that wasn't enough to keep her insulin-free. Seidel had to undergo two more transplants.

Seidel will be the guest speaker at the Bakersfield chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation at 1 p.m. Sunday at Seven Oaks Country Club.

She said it was an honor to be asked to speak at the event and feels it's her duty to raise awareness about the need for research funding for a diabetes cure.

Lou Ann Durrett, special event coordinator for the Bakersfield chapter, said she was excited to have Seidel speak to parents and children about diabetes.

"She allowed herself to be a human guinea pig to help others with this disease," Durrett said. "I think she's a hero."

Although Seidel's transplant was a success, the procedure is in the developmental stages. It has an 80 percent success rate among its 257 participants in the United States.

Seidel's surgery was performed at The Methodist Hospital at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Fewer than 10 hospitals perform the experimental transplant.

Dr. Mark Root, a local gynecologist/obstetrician who is the father of a 10-year-old Type 1 diabetic, said Seidel's story is a ray of light to many who suffer from the disease.

"It's hope, especially with a son who's a diabetic, there will be a cure some day from having to take (daily) insulin injections," Root said.

Root said parents of children with the disease often fear the potential dangers of diabetes, including blindness, amputation, even death.

Although people who have experimental cell transplant surgery may no longer have the disease, they, like other transplant patients, have to take immunosupression or anti-rejection medication.

Seidel said she takes 50 pills a day, including three types of immunosupression drugs, vitamins and antibiotics.

Root said the procedure is very new, and only adult women who meet the protocol of weighing under 150 pounds can consider the procedure.

To be considered for the procedure, the patient must suffer from severely unmanageable blood sugar levels or hypoglycemic episodes, meaning blood sugar levels drop below normal without warning.

Root hopes for more research to make the transplant more effective -- or some other possibilities for a cure.

"It's given the children a shining light of hope to want to live to see a cure," he said.

To attend Seidel's presentation, call the Bakersfield chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation at 636-1305.

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