The Oxford Centre for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolism (OCDEM) gives diabetes research a much-needed boost. Its aim is to develop a new, patient-centred model of chronic disease care that integrates non-medical intervention in behaviour, diet and exercise into a lifelong contract between the patient, the healthcare team, government and industry.

An academic powerhouse - Closing the research gap

At OCDEM both clinical care and science are integrated in one centre. Nicholas Henderson and his fellow patients in the ward, which has 26 in-patient beds.

Aspiring to realise the vision of radically improved diabetes care demands improved methods of prevention and treatment as well as major advancements in science. To that end Novo Nordisk invested GBP 4 million to establish OCDEM, which was inaugurated in September 2003. This investment was matched by a GBP 4.2 million grant from the UK National Health Service and another similar grant from the University of Oxford.

The centre brings together under one roof basic and clinical research, patient care and medical training, making the centre the first of its kind in Europe.

OCDEM's vision is to find a cure for diabetes by 2015. “Why do we think we can cure diabetes by 2015? In part because we know that type 2 diabetes deteriorates because of failure of the beta cell. New knowledge both of the genetic predisposition and of the pathophysiology of failure suggests that we should be able to find specific agents to prevent this decline in function. We are undertaking research in OCDEM on many aspects of beta cell failure. This research ranges from basic science to clinical investigations of promising therapeutic compounds,” says Professor David Matthews, chairman of OCDEM.

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The centre employs 70 scientists and associated staff organised in 12 teams and covering topics such as the causes of beta cell failure, the effect of fat on health and trials of new agents. A clinical research unit manages the studies while a staff of 50 doctors, nurses, dieticians and support staff take care of more than 15,000 patients a year.

"I see OCDEM as an academic powerhouse where people can meet and exchange ideas, as we have already begun to do in a series of meetings called The Oxford Dialogues. This multi-pronged approach helps break down the barriers between industry, government and academia and is the only way to find solutions to such a complex condition as diabetes," says Matthews.

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In establishing the OCDEM centre, Novo Nordisk made yet another contribution to its long-standing support of diabetes research in Europe, which suffers from a 20:1 disparity in public funding compared to the US. To help close this gap, in 2000 Novo Nordisk contributed USD 4.5 million over three years to a USD 10.5 million European Diabetes Research Programme dedicated to research into both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

In 2003, Novo Nordisk made a commitment for continued research into diabetes in partnership with the European Foundation for the Study of Diabetes (EFSD) and is contributing EUR 250,000 per year over three years in support of a new EUR 2.2 million programme for research into type 1 diabetes. Such contributions make Novo Nordisk one of the largest private-sector funders of diabetes research in Europe.

The aim of all these programmes is to bring about new discoveries and help achieve far-reaching advances in diabetes research, including improved understanding of genetics, disease processes, pathophysiology and treatment for the benefit of people with diabetes.