Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRF) is the leading charitable funder and advocate of type 1 (juvenile) diabetes research worldwide. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that strikes children and adults suddenly, and can be fatal. Until a cure is found, people with type 1 diabetes have to test their blood sugar and give themselves multiple insulin injections or use a pump &mdash; every day of their lives. And even with that intensive care, insulin is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications, which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke, and amputation.

Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.5 billion to diabetes research, including more than $107 million in FY2010. In FY2010, JDRF funded research projects in 19 countries throughout the world, including more than 40 human clinical trials.

JDRF volunteers have a personal connection to type 1 diabetes, which translates into an unrelenting commitment to finding a cure. These volunteers are the driving force behind more than 100 locations worldwide that raise money and advocate for government spending for type 1 diabetes research.

Fundraising and advocacy
JDRF's largest fundraising event is the national Walk to Cure Diabetes: http://walk.jdrf.org. Events are held across the country to raise awareness about type 1 diabetes and raise funds to be put toward research.

JDRF's Children Congress is its premier advocacy event and is held every two years in Washington, D.C. Children ranging from age 4 to 17 are selected from each state to become their state's delegate in Washington. More information is available at http://cc.jdrf.org.

Research
JDRF funds research that is aimed at improving the lives of people with type 1 diabetes today and in the future. JDRF focuses on research that seeks to: stop or slow the disease’s progression in people who are newly diagnosed; reverse the disease and its complications in those who have lived with it for years; prevent type 1 in people at risk and in future generations; and improve treatments for type 1 diabetes and provide better tools to achieve tight blood glucose control for people at all stages of the disease.

JDRF research can be categorized in two main areas:

Cure Therapies, which include:

Beta Cell Therapies (replacing or regenerating the cells that produce insulin)

Immune Therapies (reversing and preventing the immune system attack that causes type 1 diabetes)

Treatment Therapies, which include:

Glucose Control (improving people’s lives by enabling them to maintain better control of their blood sugar by development of either new devices or therapies)

Complications Therapies (stopping or reversing the progression of complications in people with diabetes, such as eye or kidney disease—and treating these conditions in the people who already have them)

Currently, JDRF is funding more than 40 human clinical trials, several of which are in the advanced stages of clinical testing needed before Food and Drug Administration approvals are required.

Funding statistics reported by JDRF in November 2010


 * Cure therapies: JDRF funded over $35 million in beta cell therapy research and over $32 million in immune therapies, for total cure therapy funding of over $67 million.
 * Treatment therapies: JDRF funded over $17 million in complications research and nearly $23 million in glucose control research, for total treatment therapy funding of over $40 million.

Artificial Pancreas Project
In 2006, JDRF launched a multi-year initiative in the United States to help accelerate the availability of an artificial pancreas to people with type 1 diabetes. An artificial pancreas will integrate two currently available technologies—continuous glucose monitors and insulin pumps—with a software that provides the right amount of insulin at the right time. It will enable people with diabetes to achieve tight blood glucose control avoiding both highs and dangerous lows, thereby significantly reducing the risk of the disease's devastating complications. JDRF’s Artificial Pancreas Project (APP) funds doctors and researchers across the world to advance this revolutionary way to treat and manage type 1 diabetes. In 2010, JDRF partnered with Animas Corporation to develop and test an artificial pancreas system.

The Project’s main focus is on the development, regulatory approval, and acceptance of continuous glucose monitoring and artificial pancreas technology with the goal of making the technology accessible to people with type 1 diabetes in the shortest possible timeframe. JDRF keeps in constant communication with the Food and Drug Administration as it advocates for health care coverage of technologies such as continuous glucose monitors and works to ensure clinical acceptance of technologies such as the artificial pancreas. In July 2010, the APP previewed a video on its website (http://www.artificialpancreasproject.com) that illustrated a patient’s clinical trial of an artificial pancreas.

Clinical Trials Connection
The JDRF Type 1 Diabetes Clinical Trials Connection (https://trials.jdrf.org/) is an online customized clinical trials listing service. The “opt-in” portal helps people find information about and register for the latest type 1 diabetes human clinical trials throughout the U.S. (1)

The subscription service offers monthly emails with up-to-date information about newly launched trials, and contact information for the researchers conducting the trials of the user’s specified interest.

Anyone can register to use the Clinical Trials Connection website, using basic contact information. The user can then run searches for clinical trials specifically matched to an individual’s type 1 needs.

In January 2009, JDRF documented a human clinical trial of an artificial pancreas. In the video, “Inside a Trial,” that can be found on JDRF’s Artificial Pancreas Project website (http://www.artificialpancreasproject.com/), viewers watch JDRF volunteer Krys Bagwell as he admits himself into the hospital for an overnight trial.

IDDP Program
Launched in 2004, JDRF's Industry Discovery and Development Partnership (IDDP) establishes partnerships with and provides funding to both pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to accelerate the discovery, development, and commercialization of disease-modifying therapeutics and devices for the treatment and cure of type 1 diabetes and its complications.

As of November 2010, the IDDP has funded 35 partnerships with 29 companies and committed approximately $71 million to accelerate research that will lead to better treatments and a cure for type 1 diabetes.

In accordance with the IDDP partnership stipulations, partnering companies receiving funding must provide their own project funding equal to or greater in value to JDRF’s contribution.

A list of JDRF’s IDDP partnerships can be found here: http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=106927

Social networking
JDRF launched a new social network for people with type 1 diabetes on World Diabetes Day, November 14, 2008. The site, called Juvenation http://www.juvenation.org, has more than 14,000 active members. Site features include message boards, blogs, a video library, and educational resources about life with type 1 diabetes.

Juvenation was funded by an unrestricted educational grant from Novo Nordisk through its Changing Diabetes© leadership initiative. (1)

Outreach Resources
JDRF offers patients with type 1 diabetes and their families various outreach resources in the form of interactive online toolkits, as well as mail-order informational packets and kits.
 * Bag of Hope - A backpack filled with educational information about type 1 diabetes for newly diagnosed children and their caregivers. The kit includes a teddy bear called Rufus – the bear with Diabetes. The kit also comes with various multimedia materials and tools including: Rufus Comes Home book, A First Book for Understanding Diabetes, other reference books, a DVD, and an Accu-Check Aviva Compact Blood Meter. Families can request a meeting with a JDRF volunteer in their area in order to receive the Bag of Hope and connect with other families of newly diagnosed children with type 1. The request form can be found here: http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=102197
 * Adult Type 1 Toolkit - an interactive online resource that includes discussion forums and personalized information for the various stages of adult life with type 1 diabetes. Sample topics in the toolkit include: day-to-day management; social and lifestyle issues; relationships; diet and exercise.
 * School Advisory Kit - written by a retired school administrator, the School Advisory Kit is meant to foster understanding between school administrators, parents, and students with type 1 diabetes.
 * The School Advisory Toolkit includes:
 * Practical information on everyday medical needs
 * Helpful charts with information on low and high blood sugar symptoms
 * Steps to prepare substitute teachers for students with type 1 diabetes
 * Tear out sheets and sample tools for the classroom
 * Real-life scenarios to help parents obtain a better understanding of schools'legitimate concerns :and needs when a student has type 1 diabetes

Online Diabetes Support Team
JDRF volunteers are available to answer questions one-on-one via the Online Diabetes Support Team. The support team can be contacted using the online questionnaire found on the JDRF website, and users can expect to be contacted within 48 hours. Volunteers can answer general inquiries about type 1 diabetes resources, but cannot they cannot dispense medical advice. You can find the link here: http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=103451

Walk to Cure Diabetes/Ride to Cure Diabetes
JDRF has two main fundraising events that are open to public participation: The Walk to Cure Diabetes and The Ride to Cure Diabetes.

The Walk: Lead by Chairman, Nick Jonas. Individuals, families, or companies form teams to participate in this fundraising event. In 2010, more than 6,000 corporate teams participated in walks that took place in over 200 sites nationwide. According to JDRF, the walks in 2010 raised $85 million.

JDRF estimates that more than 500,000 people will participate in walks in 2011.

Corporate walk partners include: Advance Auto Parts, Delta Ford Motor Company, Marshalls, Old Orchard, Walgreens.

The Ride: Participants of all fitness levels may choose from one of five Ride locations and bike for their choice of distance (usually between 30 to 100+ miles) to raise money for JDRF. Riders commit to a fundraising minimum that is based on their Ride location. Riders, who come to the U.S. from around the world to participate, get expert coaching and training up to months in advance from USA Cycling certified coaches.

The 2011 JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes will take place in: Burlington, VT; La Crosse, WI; Lake Tahoe, NV; Death Valley, CA; and Tucson, AZ.

Children's Congress
One of JDRF’s premier campaigns, the Children’s Congress aims to increase federal funding for diabetes research. Every two years, JDRF International Chairman Mary Tyler Moore and over a hundred children with type 1 diabetes gather in Washington, D. C. to meet with members of Congress and other top decision-makers.

The next Children's Congress will take place in 2013, in Washington, D.C.

Event history

The first Children’s Congress was held in 1999 and was inspired by an 8-year-old from Massachusetts named Tommy Solo. When a group of adult JDRF volunteers planned a rally in Washington, D.C., it was Tommy who suggested that the volunteers bring kids living with the disease to talk directly to members of Congress.

In 2009, the Children’s Congress received coverage in more than 300 media outlets throughout the country, including CBS' The Early Show, People Magazine, The New York Times, Washington Post, Fox News Channel, Associated Press, NBC News, and Scholastic Magazine.

Videos of past events can be seen here: http://cc.jdrf.org/multimedia/ JDRF publishes various print and online materials with information and resources for the type 1 diabetes community.

Publications
JDRF publications:


 * “Research Snapshot”: A one page summary of the latest developments in JDRF funded research.
 * “Cool News About the Cure”: For teens/youth, describing JDRF's recent research breakthroughs and * other research topics of interest
 * “Countdown Magazine:” Features news and in-depth analysis about JDRF funded research and *outreach efforts. The online magazine includes updates from JDRF leadership and chapter organizations.
 * “Life with Diabetes E-Newsletter”: Provides news, advice, and support for the type 1 diabetes community. The newsletter is available in HTML format, with links to additional information and a printer-friendly Adobe Acrobat version.

All publications can be found on the JDRF website: http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=100688

Locations, tax status, and spokesperson
The JDRF International is headquartered in New York City, at 26 Broadway (as of December 2009). There are JDRF affiliates in Australia, Canada, Denmark, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt corporation. Its international spokesperson is Mary Tyler Moore, also a type 1 diabetic, who appears in public service announcements for the organization.