The Past, Present, and Future of Pancreas Transplantation for Diabetes Mellitus

Pancreas transplantation was initially developed as a means to reestablish endogenous insulin secretion responsive to normal feedback controls and has evolved over time to a form of auto-regulating total pancreatic endocrine replacement therapy that can reliably achieve a durable euglycemic state without the need for either exogenous insulin therapy or close glucose monitoring. Pancreas transplantation is performed in patients who require administration of insulin because of type 1 or, less commonly, insulin-requiring type 2 diabetes, or following total pancreatectomy for benign disease [1]. Pancreas transplantation entails a major surgical procedure and the necessity for long-term immunosuppression so it is not offered universally to all patients with insulin-requiring diabetes but is usually directed to those that will already be committed to chronic immunosuppression [most commonly for kidney transplantation secondary to end stage diabetic nephropathy) [1]. In addition, candidates with potentially life-threatening metabolic complications from diabetes such as hypoglycemia unawareness or those who are failures of exogenous insulin therapy may benefit from pancreas transplantation in the absence of a kidney transplant [2]. A successful pancreas transplant is currently the only definitive long-term treatment that restores normal glucose homeostasis in patients with complicated diabetes without the risk of either severe hypo/hyperglycemia and may prevent, stabilize, or reverse progressive diabetic complications [1–3].