Type 1 Diabetes
Improving Lives Today, Investing in a Better Tomorrow
Improving Lives Today, Investing in a Better Tomorrow
Helmsley’s Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) Program is dedicated to helping the global T1D community live safer, better, and more fulfilling lives today while funding advancements in research and technology for a better tomorrow. To make this vision a reality, our T1D program takes bold but informed risks to support researchers developing new therapies and interventions that can treat, prevent, or delay the disease. We are committed to equitable, affordable access to the tools that can help people with T1D achieve better outcomes. Every day counts for people with T1D and their support network, which is why we build collaborative partnerships to expand the availability of resources to these communities.
Over the last century, advances in therapies and technologies have drastically improved health and daily lives for many with T1D, but the risk of hospitalization and serious complications persists. Managing T1D remains a lifelong, often mentally-taxing challenge that complicates everyday decisions around diet, exercise, and health. It requires around-the-clock management of blood sugar and regular administration of insulin, a drug that can cause hypoglycemia — low blood sugar that can be fatal — if not dosed correctly. Meanwhile, treatments and technologies that can significantly reduce the burden of T1D are not available to everyone.
T1D is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks beta cells in the pancreas. Beta cells produce insulin, an essential hormone that allows the body to metabolize food. People with T1D depend on therapeutic insulin, administered multiple times a day, to regulate their blood sugar — without insulin, or if insulin is dosed improperly, T1D is fatal.
In addition to the destruction of insulin-producing beta cells, in T1D the neighboring alpha cells are also dysregulated. Alpha cells produce glucagon, a hormone important for the response to low blood sugar — which can also be life-threatening.
T1D can develop at any age. The exact causes of T1D are unknown, but genetics and environmental influences are believed to contribute.
Managing T1D can be incredibly taxing on people with T1D and their caregivers. Because the risk of death is real and immediate, at Helmsley, we’re committed to easing this burden and improving outcomes for all people living with T1D.
During the 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva, Helmsley and Access to Medicine Foundation will be co-hosting a panel to discuss the complex supply and demand challenges affecting insulin access. Read more here and register here.
May 13, 2025
November 27, 2024
March 25, 2025
The rising burden of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) is one of the most pressing global health challenges of our time. As the number of people affected continues to grow, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, the need for urgent, coordinated action has never been greater. Nowhere was this urgency more evident than at the 2025 Global NCD Alliance Forum in Kigali,…
September 10, 2024
NEW YORK, N.Y., September, 6, 2024 – The New Venture Fund (NVF), a public charity that works to achieve a healthier, more equitable world, has launched a request for proposals for the Type 1 Diabetes Camps Project: 2025-2027 Campership Initiative. This initiative seeks applications from diabetes camping organizations nationwide serving youth living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) and their families….
September 5, 2024
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – A recently released study demonstrates the ECHO Model is an effective intervention for improving diabetes care in rural settings. The study examined whether rural health care providers, who participated in weekly ECHO telementoring sessions, could help people with diabetes achieve similar outcomes as patients seen by endocrinology specialists working in an academic medical center. The study found…
August 19, 2024
For the millions of people uprooted by crisis or conflict, finding adequate health care can be nearly impossible. Displaced populations often face already overwhelmed health systems — and the strain on resources makes it harder for people to access necessary care. This is especially dangerous for people living with chronic noncommunicable diseases like type 1 diabetes (T1D), who face immediate…
June 26, 2024
NEW YORK, June 26, 2024 — The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust announced today a $1.4 million grant, with a matching component, to support the growth of the Kyler Cares Foundation. Kyler Cares is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving health outcomes for underserved youth living with type 1 diabetes (T1D) by sharing educational resources, increasing access to…
June 25, 2024
NEW YORK, June 25, 2024 — The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust announced today a $5 million grant to World Bank’s Health System Transformation and Resilience Multi-Donor Trust Fund (MDTF), becoming the first philanthropy to contribute to the newly established technical assistance mechanism. Over three years, the MDTF will accelerate countries’ efforts to transform primary health care…
$1.1B
committed
840+
grants awarded
50+
countries reached