Diabetes research can’t happen without the help of people living with diabetes.

You can play a vital role by taking part in a research study or trial.

Scientists need your help to prevent diabetes, find new treatments, improve care, and ultimately, stop diabetes in its tracks.

But before new treatments can benefit people living with diabetes, they must be carefully tested to work out if they're safe, what the side effects are and whether they're better than treatments we already have. By volunteering to take part, you could play a crucial part in the fight for a world where diabetes can do no harm.

You can get involved in research at any time, but did you know many clinical trials testing new treatments to stop Type 1 diabetes in its tracks can only recruit people within the first six months of their diagnosis?

  • ADDRESS-2 is meeting the challenge and recruiting people with Type 1 diabetes to clinical trials pioneering new immunotherapies to slow or stop Type 1 in its tracks.
  • The Type 1 diabetes Immunotherapy Consortium (T1D UK) brings together researchers from across the UK to run trials that develop and test new immunotherapies.
  • TrialNet is an international network of leading academic institutions, scientists and healthcare teams dedicated to the prevention of Type 1 diabetes, by working with both people living with Type 1 diabetes and their families.

Whether it's trying a new treatment, or filling out a questionnaire, research breakthroughs can only happen with your support. 

We've answered some common questions about taking part in diabetes research - including who can get involved, the types of studies available, and what the benefits and potential risks are.

Take a look at opportunities for getting involved here. Some you can take part in from home, while others will involve visiting a research clinic. If something catches your eye, get in touch with the study team to find out more. Without you, research can't move forward.

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What would you want to say to type 1 diabetes and disordered eating?

Subtitle:
All the things I would say: A thematic analysis of letters written to type 1 diabetes and an eating disorder (T1DE).
Institution:
University of Hertfordshire
Location:
UK wide
Tags:
Questionnaire
Dates:
February 2024
February 2025

Researchers at the University of Hertfordshire would like to recruit people aged 18 and over, living with type 1 diabetes and who've experienced an eating disorder or disordered eating (T1DE) to take part in a study that is exploring individual’s experiences of and relationship with T1DE, and how their identity has been impacted.

Does semaglutide help prevent steroid-induced diabetes?

Subtitle:
How GLP-1 Analogues Prevent Steroid-Induced Diabetes (The GAPSID Study)
Institution:
Imperial College London
Location:
London
Tags:
Clinical trial
Dates:
May 2024
June 2027

Researchers at Imperial College London would like to recruit adults living with prediabetes, or diagnosed with type 2 diabetes with HbA1c between 48 and 52 mmol/mol, to take part in a study that is looking to see how the diabetes drug, semaglutide, may prevent steroid-induced diabetes. 

What is your experience living with psychosis and diabetes?

Subtitle:
Experience Based Co-design of Psychosis Centered Integrated Care Services for Ethnically Diverse People with Multimorbidity (CoPICS) 
Institution:
University of Oxford
Location:
UK wide
Tags:
Interview
Dates:
July 2024
November 2024

Researchers at the University of Oxford would like to recruit people over the age of 18 who have experience of psychosis and at least 2 long-term physical health conditions, including diabetes to take part in their study. They hope to improve the care of people living with psychosis and multiple long-term conditions by co-designing resources based on their living experiences.  

Your experience living with gastroparesis

Subtitle:
Impact of coping styles and illness identity on quality of life and symptom severity within a gastroparesis cohort and factors that moderate these relationships.
Institution:
University of Birmingham
Location:
UK wide
Tags:
Questionnaire
Dates:
July 2024
October 2024

Researchers at Birmingham City University would like to recruit people aged over 18 years old, who are diagnosed by a medical professional with gastroparesis, whether as a result of either type 1 or type 2 diabetes. to take part in a research study on this condition.  

Getting to know your food orders

Subtitle:
B-Fed Online randomised control trial: A simulation of Staff canteen food digital ordering scenario
Institution:
Abertay University and Reveal My Food
Location:
UK wide
Tags:
Questionnaire
Dates:
March 2024
January 2025

Researchers at University of Abertay would like to recruit people aged over 18 with diet-related conditions, including diabetes, to see if and how the digital food ordering app, Reveal My Food, could support people’s daily dietary decisions. The researchers hope this tool could potentially ensure the safety and improve the quality of the diet of employees in larger workplaces.

Mobile health apps use in hospital

Subtitle:
Use of mobile health apps in hospitals - understanding service provider behaviours and service user experience
Institution:
University of West London
Location:
UK wide
Tags:
Questionnaire Interview
Dates:
May 2024
August 2024

Researchers at University of West London would like to recruit people aged over 18 living with a long-term condition, including diabetes, to take part in a study to help them understand and improve the user experience of mobile health apps in hospital.

Taking part involves a10-minute online survey. Additionally, please contact the researcher if you are also interested in participating in the optional interview. 

Does type 1 diabetes affect feelings & actions towards food?

Subtitle:
Does type 1 diabetes affect feelings & actions towards food?
Institution:
University of Bristol
Location:
Online
Tags:
Interview
Dates:
November 2024
March 2025

Researchers at the University of Bristol would like to recruit people aged 12 to 25 with type 1 diabetes living in England and Wales and/or parents/guardians supporting young people living with type 1 diabetes in England and Wales to take part in an online one-to-one chat. This will help them to learn more about how the way that young people with type 1 diabetes eat and how their feelings about food may be affected by living with type 1 diabetes.

Understanding when it's best to target immune cells in type 1

Subtitle:
Type 1 Grand Challenge: Improving Treg immunotherapy success by administering therapy at different times of day (Dr James Pearson’s Root Causes Programme Grant project)
Institution:
University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff
Location:
Cardiff
Tags:
Clinical trial
Dates:
January 2025

Who: Individuals aged 18-40 living with type 1 diabetes who can attend the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff.

What: Giving two blood samples, one in the morning between 7-9am and another 10-14 hours later, at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff. Eligible participants who successfully donate both samples will be provided with a £300 voucher from Lovetoshop.

Gathering views on a test to differentiate type 2 diabetes from type 3c

Subtitle:
Acceptability of pancreatic cancer screening in individuals with new-onset diabetes
Institution:
University of Liverpool
Location:
Online
Tags:
Questionnaire Interview
Dates:
February 2025
May 2025

Researchers at the University of Liverpool seek the views of people aged 50 years and over, who have been diagnosed with diabetes in the past 12 months, on the acceptability of a potential diagnostic test that identifies whether you would benefit from screening for pancreatic cancer.

In a small subset of individuals diagnosed with type 2 diabetes (around 1%), the diagnosis of diabetes is believed to be an early sign of pancreatic cancer. 

Your voice could help combat type 1 diabetes stigma

Subtitle:
T1D-Stigma study: looking at the evolution of type 1 diabetes stigma through mixed methods to identify who it impacts and how to reduce it
Institution:
Imperial College London
Location:
UK wide
Tags:
Questionnaire
Dates:
July 2024
April 2025

Researchers at Imperial would like to recruit adults aged 18+ with type 1 diabetes to take part in a study to understand how people with type 1 diabetes experience stigma in their day-to-day lives and how this impacts the management and experience of their diabetes.  

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