BARBARA DAVIS CENTER FOR DIABETES 

THE CHILDREN’S DIABETES FOUNDATION 

Aurora 

News: Dana Davis would insist the Aug. 22 Living 50+ Years with Type 1 Diabetes celebration wasn’t about her, yet in reality it was. 

For had she not been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 7, the internationally acclaimed Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes might never have been established and countless individuals diagnosed with this autoimmune disease that destructs insulin-producing islet cels in the pancreas might not have received the life-saving care and services that it provides. 

Her journey with diabetes began on Halloween, 1975, when Davis, the daughter of Barbara and the late billionaire Marvin Davis, was trick-or-treating in the family’s Devonshire Heights neighborhood in Cherry Hills Village. “My dad was driving me door-to-door because I was recovering from the Hong Kong flu. We made it to two houses and then we had to stop because I was so exhausted.” 

Alarmed, her parents took her to the family pediatrician, the late Dr. Jules Amer, who informed the Davises that it wasn’t the flu that had sent their daughter into a tailspin. It was Type 1 diabetes – something the family knew nothing about. 

“The one thing I remember from 50 years ago was being told I would have to take shots every day for the rest of my life, and I was terrified of needles,” Davis said in a telephone interview prior to the celebration held on a lawn outside the Barbara Davis Center on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora. “Things were so primitive back then. We didn’t have blood testing yet, just urine testing that was so inaccurate. The first insulin that I was prescribed was made from pork, which I was allergic to, so I was switched to bovine insulin. I’d get one shot and sent on my way with the hope I wouldn’t die.” 

Davis remembers “Things slowly progressing to two shots a day, which was very hard, but my parents were really smart about it. Even though the prediction in those days was that Type 1 diabetics would only live for 30 or 40 years and that women with it should not have babies, they never made me feel like I couldn’t do anything. My mother would have me cover my ears when talked turned to complications … and I am forever grateful that they gave me that gift. “ 

Because her parents didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, they “Built a    tomorrow for us, the Barbara Davis Center,” where researchers are performing the groundbreaking studies that advance knowledge about Type 1 diabetes and contribute to the science that will lead to a cure. The center’s medical professionals serve children and adults from all over the world in areas that include preventing or delaying complications, effective treatment of diabetes and associated disorders. At the center’s infusion center, patients at risk for Type 1 diabetes can receive 30-minute infusions per day for two weeks that can delay the onset for up to five years. 

Unfortunately, Davis notes, it is common for “a cluster” of other autoimmune diseases to accompany a Type 1 diagnosis. Davis herself also has celiac disease, multiple sclerosis and Hashimoto’s disease, conditions that can slow her down, along with issues with her vision that required multiple surgeries to correct. 

“All four have exhausting components, so at least once a week I have to take some down time to meditate and ground myself. I’ll take a weekend to regroup and once every six months I’ll allow myself to have a pity party.” 

That said, she remains positive and encourages others – newly diagnosed to 50-plus year survivors – to do the same. 

“Look how far we’ve come,” Davis said, adding: “From the careful math we’d have to do before each meal – and get a different result every time – to boiling urine in test tubes too hot to touch to things like continuous glucose monitors that are life-changing. This is the best time ever to be diagnosed because the care is so superior and stories of the past regarding complications or limitations are just that: stories of the past.  

“Type 1 diabetes isn’t necessarily a club you want to join, but we are a community that is welcoming and here to help. If you follow your doctor’s recommendations you can lead a long, happy, healthy life.” 

At the celebration – the first of its kind in Colorado — Dr. Satish Garg, the Barbara Davis Center’s adult program director, congratulated those stepping forward to receive medallions commemorating their 50-plus years at Type 1 diabetics. 

“You make us look good because you take such good care of yourselves,” he said, adding that his career path was shaped by his mother, a Type 1 diabetic who died in her 40s. “Ever since, I had this vision to help Type 1 diabetics live much longer.” 

The celebration also included remarks by 50-plus year thrivers Cathy Krendl, Ed Orr, Nancy Magoon, Jason Carey and Renee Keesen and by Dr. Robert Eckel. 

Eckel has lived with Type 1 diabetes for almost 75 years, noting that he doesn’t remember life without it. But he remains optimistic that a cure is forthcoming. 

About the organizations: The Barbara Davis Center, established in 1978 by Barbara and Marvin Davis, is one of the largest diabetes institutes in the world. It provides state-of-the-art care to some 7,500 children and adults with Type 1 diabetes and teaches patients how to prevent or delay complications. The center is also an incubator for novel ideas and discoveries in the immunology, genetics and cell biology of diabetes. 

The Children’s Diabetes Foundation provides key funding for the center. 

Websites: https://medschool.cuanschutz.edu/barbara-davis-center-for-diabetes/about 

Childrensdiabetesfoundation.org 

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