Insulin: A Hundred-Year History

by Stuart Bradwel

In 1922, an unlikely team of researchers in Toronto made one of the most important medical breakthroughs of the century: insulin. Their discovery seemed miraculous. When it was given to diabetic patients on the brink of death, their condition rapidly improved. Those present could barely believe their eyes: they had witnessed resurrection.

However, this was no simple cure. Injections must be taken for life. Without them, symptoms quickly return, often with fatal results. But while a lifetime on insulin poses great challenges, it also offers opportunities. In this revelatory history, Stuart Bradwel looks back on one of medicine's most celebrated innovations. Setting professional narrative against subjective patient experience, he tells the story of a drug that has challenged many of the basic assumptions upon which medical practice is built, both inside and outside the clinic.

Nevertheless, Bradwel reminds us that the centenary of this apparent "wonder drug" should be no cause for celebration. Insulin often remains inaccessible to those who need it most: elusive prescriptions, uneven availability and sky-high prices result in rationing and desperate do-it-yourself research and development. In the face of bootstraps rhetoric and "Pharma Bro" capitalists, patients across the world are left to fend for themselves. There is a long way to go in the twenty-first century until insulin truly fulfils the extraordinary promises made by its discovery.

Genres: Health

ebook

Published August 18, 2023

Reviews

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stuart Bradwel does a great job of making historical and scientific facts easy to digest. The audiobook actor though?? Michael Langan, if I ever hear you speak again, it's on sight.

[Antonio Vieira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book, with a historical review about insulin, but also about various aspects surrounding Diabetes and Diabetes patients.
Points of view from patients, in which I include myself and where I feel truly portrayed, and at the same time privileged to live in a country where access to insulin is not yet a privilege, it is free and free for everyone who need.

[Sarah]

This is an extremely unpretentious book that tells you seemingly everything the average person could want to know about insulin. The reporting, storytelling, and writing come together for a clean, informative read. I was surprised how much there was to know about the history, use, and politics (including worldwide differences and histories) of insulin. Whether you have diabetes or just want to know more about how insulin works in a body where the pancreas is functioning properly, this is a book I’d recommend. I walked away knowing much more about my own body and that of others.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has long been a topic I wanted to know more about; I have 3 family members with diabetes and it is only going to become a larger public health issue. The book was very informative and accessible. The author could have gone harder against capitalism but at least it was in there. I was also pleasantly surprised at the emphasis placed on patient-led care.