Timm Gildea

One summer in July, about a year after finishing high school, I began losing weight, drinking a couple gallons of liquid a day and I was so tired it was a huge effort to work. 

I went to see our family doctor and explained my symptoms with the hope that he would tell me I was wrong.  That’s what I wanted to hear.  I wanted to hear that I could stop by and see the pharmacist for a short term prescription and would soon feel better.  That isn’t the way it turned out.  After a quick exam I was sent to our hospital for a blood test that confirmed a dangerously high blood sugar level.

I was admitted to the hospital and stayed for nearly two weeks lying in bed. There I had blood drawn daily and was taught how to give myself shots. It was explained to me that this was necessary to stay alive and serious complications, such as blindness, loss of limbs or other serious health problems, could result if I did not take care of myself.

Since that time there have been some major improvements in learning to control diabetes. We have come from going to hospital labs once a month for two glucose checks to using a personal home monitor (nearly twenty years after my onset); from injecting u-80, suspension type insulin made from cows and pigs taken once a day, to a more modern humalog, or lantus in convenient dispensers.

In September of 2004, I had episodes of very low blood sugar causing me to become unconscious. My wife called the paramedics to help me regain consciousness. From there it became obvious to her that we were going to have to find a better way to approach my disease. Not long after asking questions and taking information from our local doctor, she found Dr. Oberholzer and his staff at University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC).
An initial consultation appointment was scheduled in which the program was explained to me.  I was informed that only 8 percent of subjects tested would be able to have the procedure.  But soon,  a second appointment was made to further explain islet cell transplantation and to determine if I could be a candidate for this procedure. Step-by-step visits to the research center at the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center confirmed that my health would allow me to become part of this amazing study.

A couple weeks went by and I received a call from Dr. Oberholzer.  He was calling to tell me I had been chosen for the study. I had looked forward to the call that I thought would change my life but this was almost unbelievable.  Then, another couple weeks later I had another call from Dr. Oberholzer.  This time he said that they had received an organ that matched my blood type, and that the islet cells looked good after they had been prepared.  My wife and daughter quickly returned from an out-of-town shopping trip and we drove to Chicago. That was February 12th, 2005.  The infusion went well and the procedure was simple enough that I was able to go home the next day. Tests would continue throughout the program until my second call came on March 26th to receive my next infusion of donor cells, which was just as successful as the first. The cells were working very well and my insulin usage began to steadily decline. To be safe and conservative, I took smaller amounts of insulin on a monitored schedule and then I completely stopped taking any insulin. It is hard to believe and surely something I never thought I would see in my lifetime.

I realize I am very lucky to be a part of this successful program, and continue to do very well. I enjoy the easy way of life without continuous insulin scheduling and low blood sugar episodes. New developments could help millions of diabetics like me. I continue to hear promising news from the doctors and staff at the UIC Clinical Research Center that help me, and I thank them all. I hope that my part in this research has been as helpful to the study as it has been for me. I hope they continue the good work and maybe someday a 4-year-old child can start school without the burden of unstable blood sugar and medications, leading to a normal life free of complications.

To learn more about Timothy Gildea’s Transplant you can see the Chicago Channel 3 news story Video by clicking here.