Good news for thousands of diabetics as the newly approved insulin is set to make their lives easier and put an end to their daily struggles.
As explained by Associate Professor Christos Petrou from the Department of Pharmacy at the University of Nicosia to philenews, this insulin is called ‘icodec’, and it is considered the most advanced insulin at the moment.
It is administered once a week and is suitable for addressing both glycaemic control issues and non-compliance issues of patients with daily frequent doses/injections.
Internationally, it is estimated that “one-third of individuals with diabetes do not adhere to their daily insulin therapy.”
The ‘icodec’ molecule of insulin has been developed by modifying human insulin to prolong its duration of action to approximately seven days.
It is administered via subcutaneous injection, once a week, on the same day each week, and the dose is adjusted according to the patient’s blood glucose levels, which should be regularly monitored.
In patients with type 1 diabetes, ‘icodec’ must be combined with short-acting insulin to cover insulin requirements during meals. In patients with type 2 diabetes, it can be used as monotherapy or in combination with other anti-diabetic drugs, including short-acting insulin.
Regarding how this new insulin works, Petrou explained that it “acts in the same way as the insulin naturally produced by the body, facilitating the entry of glucose into cells via the bloodstream.”
In doing so, it “controls blood glucose levels, reducing diabetes symptoms and complications. In the bloodstream, insulin ‘icodec’ binds to a protein called albumin, thus prolonging its action in the body.”
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