Pancreas Development Explains Aggressive Type 1 Diabetes in Children

According to a study published in 2025, researchers have uncovered a key reason why type 1 diabetes is more severe and aggressive when it develops in young children. The study, conducted by a team at the University of Exeter, shows that the pancreas is still undergoing significant development in childhood, particularly before the age of 7.

This makes the pancreas far more vulnerable to damage from the immune system's attack on the insulin-producing beta cells. In children, the beta cells exist in small clusters and are quickly destroyed, preventing them from maturing into the larger, more durable Islets of Langerhans seen in adults.

The good news is that this new understanding opens the door to potential treatments. Researchers say newly developed drugs could help delay the onset of type 1 diabetes in children, buying precious time for their pancreas to fully develop and potentially reducing the severity of the disease.

Around 400,000 people in the UK live with type 1 diabetes, which is an autoimmune condition that requires lifelong insulin therapy. The research provides crucial insights into why the condition can be so aggressive in young patients like 8-year-old Gracie, who was suddenly diagnosed in 2018 and had to quickly adapt to a new, challenging lifestyle.

Experts are hopeful that this breakthrough will lead to better ways to prevent or delay type 1 diabetes in children, potentially sparing them from the full burden of the disease.