A new hope: Australian boy gets world’s first artificial pancreas

A 4-year-old Australian boy has become the first patient in the world to be fitted with an artificial pancreas. Xavier Hames has Type 1 diabetes and is at constant risk of hypoglycemia, when low glucose levels can result in seizures, coma or death. But Hames was fitted with a pancreas-like pump that can identify when sugar levels are low and stop the release of insulin. Professor Tim Jones from Perth’s Princess Margaret Hospital said Thursday that the device would make life a lot easier for the parents of children with Type 1 diabetes, especially at night, when the risk of hypoglycemia is higher.

It’ll work in any age group.

Professor Tim Jones from Princess Margaret Hospital

After five years of clinical trials by specialists at hospitals around Australia, the device is now commercially available at a cost of about $8,000. However, Jones said the pump will become cheaper and more accessible as the technology develops.

It allows him to have more freedom with eating. He’s only 4. You can’t stop a child wanting a bowl full of pasta.

The mother of Xavier Hames

Health pancreas