Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Rebecca on February 15, 2012 at 9:26am

First I want to say that I'm not thrilled with the idea of J&J acquiring Omnipod... or Dexcom for that matter. With that said, the integration of the two is long overdue. I personally would not pay for anyone else to do monthly interpretations of my numbers, especially not without me providing the extra input (Such as: I went to 2 weddings, 3 birthday parties, and a cookout last month so I ate a lot, used a lot of insulin, and still ran a little high). That kind of stuff isn't going to show up on a standard upload. Also, my Endo already gives me input every 3 months, I don't think getting "interpretations" of my data monthly would make that much of a difference. With that said, I know that some insurance companies do require members to go to the Endo regularly and that can be costly on some plans. If this could rival that and be recognized by those plans you'd have a customer base. Including the A1C test kits only helps if the doctors your seeing (and your insurance company) are willing to accept those results. So long story short, it's not a bad idea and I'm glad people are thinking up new things. You will have some market if you can make it cost effective and especially if you can get insurance on-board. But until the insurance is on-board (and maybe even then) I don't think I'd be that excited to take part in it.

Permalink Reply by DEA on February 15, 2012 at 10:04am

I like the idea of one device, but I already have to keep my CGM sensor away from the Pod site. Putting it together seems too difficult. I mind having to poke my skin twice, once for the Pod and once for the CGM, a lot less than I mind having to cart two devices around.

I think that the ideas to which you allude about wireless data synchronization are fantastic, and I would conceivably pay ($50+)for an App, say, that would talk to both Pod and Dexcom sensor and collapse the data onto a single graph (so, you would see the BG levels over the course of the day, overlay that with bolus times, square-wave boluses time courses, and, heck, overlay that with meal times and exercise times), as well as supplying me with data "slices" for mean BG levels, total insulin per day, etc. I do not currently have that all-in-one command center for my diabetes self-care, and I think it is sorely lacking in the market. If I could control both of them from my phone, and they could talk to my phone and have it give me feedback, well, the convenience would be worth some out-of-pocket cost.

The idea of having my data passed back for review is not compelling, to me, at least, because:

1. Let's say I get feedback to change something about my regimen from these folks. Then I get to my endocrinologist and he disagrees with their assessment and course of action. It would put me in a bad spot.
2. From the perspective of the business, it seems like the liability for the company and for the endos and CDEs involved would be dangerous. They aren't actually seeing the patients, just a sample of data about them. I love the idea of telemedicine, but I would be concerned about proceeding. I know, it's not my money, but I would also hate to use this service and see it put on hold because of a lawsuit from someone who alleges they were put in danger by an endo recommending a change in basal rate that dropped their BG too low.
3. I'm also unsure about the idea of constant tinkering with my regimen. If, for example, my results showed something one week, it might not be applicable the next week, because I was sick, for example.
4. About the real-time aspect: Are you talking about someone texting me if my BG is rising rapidly,and letting me know that I should bolus some insulin? My Dexcom CGM is going to let me know about the rising/high BG, and I've been trained how to deal with it. What might be more useful is more of a "Panic Button" system, where I've got something like an OnStar service so that if my BG has been over 400 for 5 hours and repeated boluses are not bringing it down, it would be nice to have someone walk me through the possibilities after I talk it through with him or her. Or, say, I bolused 3 extra units of insulin because I was unable to finish my meal and am stuck. They might be able to tell me to, say, turn off my basal delivery and work out the math on whether I can take some emergency glucose tablets to head off hypoglycemia, or whether I have to get to the hospital, for example.
5. So, yeah, something like OnStar for diabetes management would be worth... I don't know, $10-$15/month out of pocket. Maybe less. I could see myself not using it and deciding I could do without it, but other people might get into trouble more often than I do.
6. Oh! Along this same line, if the central server sees that my BG is super-low, and someone from there tries to contact me and cannot, then sending out a text or call to a designated contact would be a useful thing. I've been at the pool with my kids and gotten pretty low, and if my wife had gotten a text regarding this, no matter how OK I felt, she could have helped out. This would, of course, have to be an opt-in

Permalink Reply by NatalieHodge on February 17, 2012 at 10:49am

for the real time advice to be meaningful the blood sugars would need to have tags I think, right? like with a low " forgot to eat all carbs" or with a high " high glycemic index meal" we try to tag so our endo will have context when they are looking through the data later... Onstar for diabetes, I like that...

Permalink Reply by Gil DePaula on February 25, 2012 at 8:01pm

The problem with one integrated wearable device (pump + CGM) is that the sensor can go 7, 14 or more days, while the pod only holds insulin for a few days. The user would have to remove and throw it away after running out of insulin, wasting several days of additional sensor days.
The solution is to have a central device (reusable), where the pump and CGM modules get plugged in. That way, you can potentially unplug the module that expired while keeping the other running for the remaining of its useful life.
Pancreum has the patent for that modular/expandable design. ;)

Permalink Reply by Gil DePaula on February 16, 2012 at 9:15am

I think the day J&J (or any other pharma giant) buys Insulet and Dexcom will be a very sad day for all people with diabetes. That would mean the market would be consolidated and manipulated by a few huge corporations.
I think more than this server-based solution (which seems to be a good thing), people with diabetes need a diversity of companies in the market. Competition brings innovation, and small companies bring innovation FAST. Big companies are too slow and too concerned with their profit in the next fiscal quarter. If they have $10 billion, why haven't they released a product like that yet? The internet, as we know it, has existed since 1994- that's almost 20 years.
Also, we need to stop and think about the fact that JDRF gave $20 million to a company that already has $10 billion (J&J). I think people with diabetes should start an "Occupy JDRF" to find out why that money was given to J&J. What was their motivation? That's a very strange way to use donor's money, and a waste in my opinion.
Just my 2 cents...

Permalink Reply by NatalieHodge on February 17, 2012 at 10:42am

Yes, Gil I agree big companies cannot innovate, they can only acquire innovative disruptive startups... I suspect they do not have a patch pump in progress, anyone know?

I also agree that giving them 20 mil when they have 10 bil was an incredible mistake. They SHOULD have given it to YOU.

What do you think about the "Onstar for Diabetes" concept of remote monitoring though? As a safety feature for artificial pancreas, it is an exciting concept, don't you think?

Permalink Reply by Gil DePaula on February 18, 2012 at 12:25pm

Hi Natalie,
Not necessarily to Pancreum, but to any company that doesn't already have a large amount of cash in the bank.

Permalink Reply by jojo on February 17, 2012 at 11:03pm

Totally agree with Gil. Would not like to see a pharm giant buy Insulet. Bad idea. Gil, I also agree with you about the whole JDRF thing.

Permalink Reply by NatalieHodge on February 18, 2012 at 7:11am

Hi Jo Jo! Thanks for jumping in... I am a student of disruptive innovation as well, and always a fan of a not quite perfect, yet, disruptive and undeniable advantage over the outdated product. That's why we chose omnipod, and are willing to troubleshoot to help move patch pump forward. I am just trying to visualize the features of artificial pancreas, from the standpoint of a MOM and also the standpoint of a clinician and the features that it must have... IF Animas were to launch a version of a tubed pump with dexcom, could you talk your kid into tubing? I don't think I could talk kennedy into a tubed pump at this point, even that new cell novo pump has a little 4 inch tubing, I think she wouldn't even do that!

What are the features of artificial pancreas, in your mind? Both the device combo AND the safety, software, platform connectivity ( text, emr integration, etc...) features you'd want?

Permalink Reply by Gil DePaula on February 18, 2012 at 12:36pm

An "Onstar"-type system would be a great improvement. The ideal scenario would include all diabetes management device makers "connected" via this system, which could be provided by a separate, "diabetes online services" company.
For an artificial pancreas system, I think integration, connectivity and mobility are essential for today's technology and user's familiarity with the web, etc.
I hope someone comes up with such system soon.

Permalink Reply by Jim on February 16, 2012 at 10:37am

As an Insulet investor, I would have no objection to J&J buying the company at, say, $60 per share. Many analysts believe that PODD is a takeover target. As a diabetic, I think deep pockets will benefit the company. It has a lot of debt, and I would hate for innovation to suffer because of funding. Not all takeovers destroy innovation. Integrating my pod with a CGM would be fantastic. I think it would give me much better control. I've never used a CGM, but I would like to. What I would really like is smartphone integration with my pods. I hate carrying so many devices.

Permalink Reply by NatalieHodge on February 17, 2012 at 10:44am

what would that cost then, at 60 per share? J and J has about 700 million slated for innovation and r and d on the device side, BTW, from their investors last preso.. I am buying some insulet stock as well, btw...

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