Do you have a family link??

[2High]

I was wondering how many RCers have a genetic link to other Ds?? For me, there is no-one else in my family with D, ever...

[Jelli]

Same here to 2high. Theres absoulutly no known cases of T1 in my family though theres a fair few cases of T2.

I guess it just means we are extra lucky...........and special :)

[Kirsty]

Two of us (siblings) and absolutely no-one else.

My sister was diagnosed 24 years ago (I think) and me 13.5 years ago.

[Jade]

No one in on the maternal side (of T1 or 2) and only a cousin of my Dad with T1 on the paternal side. No one has the coeliac or thyroid issues either (parents and sister got screened when I was diagnosed). I'm the only 'special' one in the family. Maybe i'm adopted? (nope, not really).

[AdelaideChic]

None! Im the first, and hopefully last...

[Melly]

I am the only one that is type 1 on both my mum and dads side of the family. However there is alot of type 2 on all sides!!

[Be11ydancer]

There's T2 everywhere and only one case of T1 besides me.

[Lisa]

Both Mum and I are type 1s...

[Oldgirl]

There were lots in my family, but they all died young - little brother, father, uncle, 2 aunts, 4 greataunts or uncles, grandfather............... and probably a lot more, but they would've been around before insulin was invented/discovered. I've been written up in a few medical journals because there are so many of us.I was told 10% of Type 1s have other family members with it,but we have a very small population over here, so there are probably a few CLOSE relationships muddying the gene pool!

[Jelli]

Wow. Is it regarded as being passed on by a dominant gene? Or is the mum or dad a carrier of a recessive gene which then passes it on to the child? I'm hopeless when it comes to the scientific side of D, but I'm really interested if there is a genetic link. In your case, I guess there was!

[kaz]

Didn't think I had anyone til started to do the family tree. Got my Great Grandma's death certificate and she died in 1944 from complications due to diabetes at the age of 84. Pretty good going in that day and age!

[Oldgirl]

I don't know - I'm just amazed that my dad, who was one of the first people in NZ to use that new-fangled insulin stuff, managed to survive long enough to produce 4 kids!The 2 oldest don't have the D, and are hale and hearty.
Our local diabetic forum asked the same question a while ago, and a lot of respondents had at least one sibling with the D - one person had 3, I think.I've heard that if your father has it, your chances of getting it rise quite dramatically - 1 in 4, from memory (that theory obviously didn't work in my family!)
But, as I said, we do have a very small population here...........

[abs]

my dad was the first child in melbourne to use insulin - 1932 (2yrs of age)... well he wasn't really based in melbourne, more country victoria

then 4 out of the 5 of us all T1's too

no sign of it in the next generation (yet) - oldest is 11.something, my Jordy is the youngest at nearly 6 months, plus there is another on the way amongst my family (announced yesterday... still very early on though so not naming names)

[abs]

oops, damn not being able to edit... one of my aunts is T2 (dads sister)

[Lisa S]

Both myslef and mum in our family and as far as I know no other diabetics at all

[Tony]

I've got a first cousin with T1 as well. OK not with T1 now because she's had a Kidney and Pancreas transplant. T1 is gone but now she's having new problems because of the anti-rejection drugs.

I had a argument with my GP who was insistant that T1 isn't passed genetically but T2 is.

BullS**t I say.

[Oldgirl]

I just remembered - I also had a cousin (on my dad's side ) who had Type 1 - she died when I was a kid. Her mum, my aunt, had it. So there's GOT to be some genetic link, even if it is only in a few of us!
Our son's 27 and so far - touch wood - has no symptoms, and neither do his 6 cousins, so it looks as if I'm the last - YIPPEE!!!!

[Bethylated Spirits]

I have absolutely no sign of it on my Mum's side of the family.

Up until 3-4 years ago I thought it was definite that there was no-one on either side of my families who had type 1.
Then they decided I was old enough to be told my Dad wasn't my biological father and that I'm a sperm donor baby.

Personally I think I was old enough to be told this when I began to understand simple words... but my Dad has a few issues with it and isn't a very smart man either so anyway they went with his insecurities and didn't tell us till I was 16 and my brother 20. He too is a sperm donor baby which would make him genetically my HALF brother which wasn't very suprising because he doesn't look anything like ANYONE on my mother's side of the family. We all have the darkest brown hair and he's got red fire engine hair! Plus the more subtle thing's like shape of face and ears and nose and stuff are very different. When we were little I used to tease him about being adopted because he stood out so much. He must look a lot like his "father" if you ask me.

Personally I look quite a bit like my Mum but there are some things which are very not her so sometimes I find myself taking everything about me that doesn't look like her and trying to imagine it on a 40+ year old man possibly with diabetes!

Because going by what everyone says there's quite a large chance that if anyone related to me had diabetes it would be him...

I'd like to track him down just for the health side of things, to find out if anyone on that side has diabetes or even anything else in future where the information could be useful. I don't feel any need build a relationship with him, it's only genetics to me. But I'm unable to because they didn't keep records of what sperm was who's back then so it shall forever remain a mystery!

But yeah so that leaves half of my genetics unknown and a big question mark hanging over it, which will probably always be there....

[Axel]

I have a direct familial line. My paternal grandmother had it, then I got it, Then my Dad got it aged 62.
Who knows how he missed all the triggers.
LX

[artemis]

My paternal grandmother was T2, and 2 of my aunts were diagnosed T2, but the one who's still alive at 83, is sure that she's a T1 or T1.5, and when I heard her history, I agree. Trouble was 40 years ago, if you were 40+. you had to be T2. She had the thirst, peeiing etc, and is now on MDI with no complications. I think my other aunt may also have been T1.5, but I can't prove it. No-one on Mum's side of the family. The haemochromatosis also comes from Dad's family - same aunt has it, her son has it, another cousin has it. And there's coeliac, too. My cousin, who is the son of my other diabetic aunt, has it. And my bother has MS, All auto immune conditions.

Jelli, I was always told that T1 was a recessive gene, but ...

[Hel]

Hi all

I am the only one in my family with diabetes (T1), however, there are 14 of us with Thyroid disorders, one Addison's Disease, and 3 Lupus. I think our family may have a tiny predisposition towards auto-immune disease.

Helen

[cateb]

i'm the first (and hopefully last) T1 in my family - although there's some t2 around the place on both sides. My twin sister lives in fear of getting T1, cos i told her she might catch it from me since we share a bathroom...and and she believed it!

[waifwaller]

I have no family history of any auto-immune disease or even type 2. On my dad's side of the family *everyone* lives to at least 100 years old. I think i must be a mutant.

[sty]

God you asked this-as much as some people say that there is no genetic link, I strongly disagree! There is def. some, although not as strong as T2.

My first cousin has it, and I have a friend who has D and so does his sister and another family that has 2 diabetic sons.

[aussienew]

My younger sister was diagnosed T1 at 13 (30 years ago). I was diagnosed T1 5 years ago at age 40 but have been Coeliac since 6 months old. My Mother, brother and two sisters have all been diagnosed with Coeliac during the last 5 years. Apparently stems from Mom's Celtic origins.

[hallie]

only me in my immediate family, but my dad's cousin's grandson is T1, but that's pretty distant.

[Kate]

Nulla. Nyet. Zip.

[aelston]

Mum's father - T1 from 32 or so.

[Smartie Chic]

My brother is a T1. I was diagnosed about 15 years after him. No one else on either ma or pa's side has or had T1.

[Kate]

God you asked this-as much as some people say that there is no genetic link, I strongly disagree! There is def. some, although not as strong as T2.

Not sure who told you that there is no genetic link. Many many twin and other studies have shown that Type 1 is 50% genetic, 50% environmental. This is very well-established in the literature.

[Ennovyar]

I'm the only T1 in my immediate family, my fathers 2nd cousin had D (not sure which one), and my 2nd cousin has T1

[Bella]

Yep......

* My mum's dad (Grandad) had it and died before I was born, so quite young.

* My older brother got it when he was 3.

* I then got it when I was 18.

* Now my daughter has it, she was 7 when diagnosed. So it's running rampid in our family!!!

So, non-D people..... STAY AWAY FROM US, OR YOU MIGHT CATCH D!

[Ms Jax]

Only me and my nephew with T1 in my family. We have a few other dodgy things though - rare breast cancer (mum), lupus (sister), coeliac (sister).

In my circle of close friends, there are 3 of us diagnosed as adults - go figure!

[Clare]

None whatsoever but a couple of relatives with thyroid trouble.

An endo told me 80% of diabetics have no family history of it - I think it was just T1 he was talking about.

[Risa]

Apparently in my fathers family it skips a generation, and we get it as adults, which means plenty of time to have kids and pass on the wacky genes....before the advent of insulin, who knows how many of my ancestors had it, and consequently died of it?

I recently found out that my Great-Great Grandmother had Type 1, and my Grandmother had always assumed she had had it since childhood, but that would have been impossible, because my Great Grandmother was born in 1901, so my Great-Great must have gotten it after that or she wouldn't have survived without insulin long enough to have babies!

My Great Aunt got it in her 50's, and I got it at 27. But when the doctors ask me if there is Type 1 in my family, they say that my Great Aunt doesn't count! Sounds like genetics to me.

There is also a history of autoimmune disease on my mothers side, so I've got it coming and going, though psoriasis and vitelago(sp?) aren't so bad...nothing good shampoo and a pair of pants wont fix, anyway.

-Risa

[Melzy]

My brother & I were both diagnosed T1 at around 15 plus we have an aunty & uncle on mothers side with T1

[Kate]

Hi Risa - There is a fair amount of research being done just as of the last few years into sub-types of Type 1 diabetes, that you might be interested in. Andrew Hattersley, a geneticist in the UK has done some important work to identify a type that you can be born with (remember all us kids with D were told to say very clearly, "no you can't be born with it"? Well, you can!) and is one to watch as he is also doing work into types that develop slowly and later in life. An endo called Spiros Fourlanos in Melbourne did his PhD into LADA - latent autoimmune diabetes in adults - which is increasing in popularity as a diagnosis as a result ... you might want to Google or Pubmed/Medline search those names and others if you are interested to learn more about this area.

[kaz]

Risa, my great grandmother was born 1863 had at least 9 children and died in 1939. But it only states 'Diabetes Mellitus' & 'Myocardial Degeneration' as cause of death so I guess it was probably Type 2.

[JAC]

Fortunately I am the only diabetic in my family. Well for as long as anyone can remember i.e. since the late 1800's nobody on either my maternal or paternal side has had diabetes. However an Endo once told me that there would definintely be someone somewhere with it. I hope to be the first and last with this genetic pain in the butt disease. By the way I have had it for 37 years and none of my 4 sibilings or our children have it - thank goodness.

[Em_nz]

My Dad is a type 1.5, diagnosed in his early 40s or so, and I'm following in his footsteps (aww aren't I a good gal).
No other known diabetics that anyone is aware of... so far.
I *reallllly* hope that my son wont have it. So far so good (aged 10). Crossed fingers!

[Jelli]

Hi Em_nz

Just curious, what actually is T 1.5. I know its diabetes and what not, but is it closely ralated to T 1 or T2 or what?

[Em_nz]

Type 1.5 is just type 1 but with a late onset. Otherwise called LADA, not the car, lol, and I can't remember what it stands for... but something that means type 1 diabetes that takes a while to get started!

If it wasn't nearly midnight here I'd get you all the details... but i'm half asleep... so if I remember, I'll come back to this tomorrow unless someone else beats me to it.

G'nite RC'ers!

[AndrewR]

My Stepmother and Brother-In-Law are both D's.

Its fun when you say that and people say 'so it DOES run in families...'

[Em_nz]

LADA = Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults

Here's some more info:
http://www.diabetesmonitor.com/lada.htm

...and plenty more info to be found if you hit Google.

[Jelli]

Thanks Em_nz

[Kate]

From: http://www.realitycheck.org.au/starterkit/whatis.php

LADA - Latent Autoimmune Diabetes of Adulthood

Like Type 1 diabetes, Type 1.5 diabetes or latent autoimmune diabetes of adulthood (LADA) is caused by the immune system's destruction of the insulin- producing pancreatic beta cells. The main difference between Type 1 and LADA is the age of diagnosis - thirty or older. LADA is also known as slow-onset type 1 diabetes, late-onset autoimmune diabetes of adulthood, and type 1.5 diabetes. The only difference between LADA and Type 1 diabetes is that in LADA, the beta cell destruction has occurred over years to decades instead of days to months. Like other forms of Type 1 diabetes, people with LADA require insulin injections to normalise their blood glucose levels. < About Diabetes, www.about.com, 25 June 2004<

[Jelli]

So LADA is exactly the same as T1 but age is their enemy -they may of had it for years but not known about it.

Funny though, my dad is on insulin injections and has been for about 5 years , but prior, was on tablets for about 15 yrs. He has, and so has his doc, said that hes T2 and was switched to insulin becaue of poor diet and neglect to his D. Having said that though, that kind of contridicts the "criteria" for having either LADA or T2. I personally think he's T2 but i dont know now....

[tatus]

(LADA) is caused by the immune system's destruction of the insulin- producing pancreatic beta cells.

must only be the age that's the diff between LADA and T1 as I was diagnosed at age 7 with T1, 14 with hypothyroidism, and 18 with Scheuermann's disease. The doc's reckon that I got some funny auto-immune syndrome(y) thingo going on. Wonder how many other T1's out there have other auto-immune (dis)placements??? If LADA is the immune systems destruction of only the pancreatic beta cells - then what's the differnce between T2 & LADA. I admit to much ignorance about T2 when asking this....

[Jessie L]

Welll... My Mum is adopted so I don't know about her side, but on my Dad's there is nothing - no type 1, late onset or other, and no type 2. Not sure about autoimmune, think an Aunt might have Lupus but this is pushing the far reaches of my memory!

[kat]

ok family link
my dad and his brother had type 1 died very young
my grandparent both had it
I have type 1 and my sister has type 2
before I got type 1 I was on the family trial and they said I would not get type 1
they think that my nephew will have type 1

[big bad bernie]

I am the first on in my family to have type 1 diabetes. No history what so ever. Obviously i'm special.

[Inga]

Yeh I'm special to big bad , its just me!!

[eliz]

My sister has had T1 since she was 9. I have had T1.5, or LADA, really just T1, for 5 years and have just gone on insulin. My dads Mum has D. She got it at the same age as me, 32, so it sounds like hers is LADA as well. But back then they told her it was T2 and she just didn't look after herself. Which is crazy since she is very strict with herself and is in her 70s and has no other problems.
Liz

[Trish]

I have 3 cousins all from my mums side and now some of their children too. One of my cousins is a twin and her sister never got it. I often wonder if my own children will become D as I have t1 and mother in law is t2, so they are getting genes from both sides. I hope they never do.
Trish

[waifwaller]

Does anyone know if the same genes are responsible for t1 and t2? Does having t2 in the family increase the risk of t1? Maybe Trish will have less to worry about if the answer is no. I hope so!

[Beloved]

Yep, I'm the first one in my family on either side to have diabetes of any kind... not even any T2's in my family! Oh lucky me :p

[Tony]

Hi RCers,

In a moment of "Internet Wandering" this afternoon I went looking to see what I could find about Type 1 being Hereditary.

I found lot's of stuff, but this site in the US seemed to put it in perspective for me. Joslin Diabetes Center is affiliated with Harvard Medical School

http://www.joslin.org/managing_your_diabetes_687.asp

I'm interested that so many of us have some sort of History with D and yet some of us don't. With so many members of this Forum wouldn't it be interesting if the SurveyMonkey could get a measure of how many of us fit into areas of the Joslin site ?

It's an area of Research and yet nobody's ever asked me except for on this Forum :)

Tony