ReTUNE helped put my diabetes into remission: David's story

In Spring 2019, David, then 48, started to feel unwell. He was experiencing persistent headaches and found his eyesight was deteriorating. At one point he even fainted. At first, he believed this was all due to changes in caffeine intake and the reduction in the amount of coffee he was drinking.

“I decided to have an eye check first, to rule out any problems with my vision.”

However, the optician quickly noticed a burst blood vessel on David’s retina. This made David worry that something could be very wrong, but he never suspected type 2 diabetes. He immediately booked himself a GP appointment.

“I was a healthy 48-year-old with a BMI of 27. My GP ordered blood tests and, with no family history of diabetes either, they were surprised themselves that the results said it might be type 2 diabetes – further testing showed it was true."

"They suggested I have some more tests to rule out anything else." However, the tests all came back as conclusive that David was living with type 2 diabetes.

David began researching ways to put his type 2 diabetes into remission and discovered Professor Roy Taylor’s DiRECT trial. Unfortunately, he didn’t quite feel he had support from his GP to explore whether remission might be possible for him.

David was treating his diabetes with a tablet called metformin and was measuring his sugar levels regularly. At the same time, he made a promise to himself to lose weight.  

After losing around 5 kilos, David returned to his GP. Now his blood sugars were more stable, he asked his GP about reducing the dosage of metformin. His GP recommended against this, and that David should continue with his usual dosage. 

The turning point for David came when his friend had a heart attack.

“I was shocked, I thought to myself I was living with diabetes and this could be me.” So David did more research. This is where he came across the ReTUNE trial. 

After getting in touch with the research team, David was asked to come in for an assessment to check if he met all the criteria for taking part in the study. He did.

With support from his medical team, David stopped taking his metformin and was put on a low-calorie diet programme which consisted of formula meal replacements (shakes and soups) and non-starchy vegetables for 2-4 weeks. This was designed to help him lose internal fat stored in and around the liver and pancreas. This was followed by a 4-6 week weight loss maintenance period which involved the gradual reintroduction of normal foods. At all times, David was supported by a medical team as part of the study.

“When I returned to my diabetes specialist, my HbA1c was 42! I was so happy.” 

A new outlook

“My health declining is what scared me, really, and made me try and see what can be done. I’ve changed that now, I am in remission and I am very happy.

“I exercise now not because I need to but because I enjoy it – running around with a few less kilos is easier. I love playing with my kids and look forward to a happy and healthy future with my family.”