Sarah Howard
Sarah Howard (nee Tackett) has dedicated her career to supporting the T1D community ever since she was diagnosed with T1D while in college in May 2013. Since then, she has worked for various diabetes organizations, focusing on research, advocacy, and community-building efforts for people with T1D and their loved ones. Sarah is currently the Senior Manager of Marketing at T1D Exchange.
Sarah and her husband live in NYC with their cat Gracie. In her spare time, she enjoys doing comedy, taking dance classes, visiting art museums, and exploring different neighborhoods in NYC.
The only close family member is a paternal cousin. She isn’t even interested in getting her DNA tested because “it may reveal some bad disease tendency.” She has children and a grandchild who could be tested. Her older sister and her cousins (me & my brother) all had/have T1D by age 15.
I answered “Other” because I DO wish my cousin & her offspring WOULD get screened for antibodies.
Several family members have been diagnosed with T1D or T2D
my siblings & parents are older (like me) and they’ve never expressed any interest in getting tested. my nieces and nephews have never said anything either
No. As far as I know, no one in my family has been tested for T1D autoantibodies. I don’t believe any of us has ever thought of it. Also, I don’t know what purpose it would serve. I am 70 years young. My siblings are around my age. My daughter, neices and nephews are all grown and scattered around the USA.
Also, no one else in my family has T1D.
But, Lawrence, how can you or they be sure until they’re tested for antibodies?
My family (parents and sibling) participated in a study around 30 years ago before screening was something you could request.
First of all, I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: stop asking questions about family screenings for antibodies!!!! This is seriously like the tenth time this question has come up. There are plenty of other questions about T1D you can ask. Second, there should be another option to the effect of “I have not discussed antibody screenings with my family,” which is the category under which I fall.
Hi Kristen, thanks so much for your feedback. We do plan to continue questions and education on T1D screening. The constantly evolving clinical trials and FDA-approved therapies that offer the potential to intervene, delay —— and hopefully some day prevent —— T1D are only effective if children are being screened for the earliest stages of T1D. Without screening, we cannot delay or prevent T1D.
We do offer “No, my family members have no been screened” as an option.
We appreciate your passion as a person affected by T1D and hope you enjoy our other daily questions.
All the best,
The T1D Exchange team
Just my children, all grown and all clear:*)!
I have LADA, and the idea of screening has not come up, either by me or my adult children. I guess I need to present the opportunity to them so they can make the decision.
I have a huge extended family–siblings, cousins, kids and grandkids–and afaik no one else has it, with the exception of my first cousin’s daughter. I was told at diagnosis back in 1983 that T1 doesn’t necessarily track in families the way T2 does, and that certainly seems to be true in my case. So it doesn’t really seem necessary.
William, that was then. This is now! Please read Samantha’s reply to Kristen! 😎
I was born in 1939 and had many childhood illnesses. Three different kinds of measles and tonsils removed before I was 5 years old, then mumps and chickenpox when I was 5. While recovering from the mumps and chickenpox, I began showing the symptoms of very high blood sugar. Three doctors examined me and they were not able to make a diagnosis. I had lost much weight, and I had stopped eating. I did not have an appetite. It was almost impossible for me to walk. A fourth doctor had my blood tested and he made the diagnosis. While receiving pork insulin I finally began to recover a few days after my sixth birthday.
I did not have ant relatives with diabetes. I think the childhood diseases caused internal damage and that was the cause of my diabetes. At the present time there are still no type one diabetics among my relatives.
I do not believe it is necessary for my children and grandchildren to be screened for T1D autoantibodies.
Richard, why not suggest they be tested to be sure? Why not let them make the decision? ❤️😎
My brother and I have never talked about this.
Only my 2 youngest niece have been screened, middle born about a month after my oldest ones diagnosis. Their Dad & I both have have T1D.
I have T1, and when my oldest grandson got T1, the other 3 grandkids got screened. The grandson who’s the brother of the one with T1, showed a strong possibility of being a future T1 diabetic. It sadly came true about a year later.
Aha! So the test was an accurate predictor? Did the doctor (s) suggest any preventive course of action?
No and no because I got T1D at 47 years old from a virus.
I’ve previously answered this question. My daughter and my three grandchildren, who are now in their 20’s, have no interest in being screened. I asked them when screening first became available and have repeated my request as my grandchildren grew into their teens. They refuse.
I was genetically screened and found to have monogenic Type 1 Diabetes. Not caused by antibiotics, but a gene defect. So does my eldest of three sons and his eldest of two daughters.
❤️ Good on you for trying, Janis. So often we humans make decisions based on emotions, like fear, not rationality. I guess Freud was on to something. 😎
I wonder how many of us T1Ds have been tested for monogenic diabetes? Theoretically couldn’t this be treated by CRISPR?
I have 1 brother that was also Type 1 … sadly, no longer with us; 2 first cousins that are both Type 1, and 2 brothers that are Type 2.
I’ve not discussed this with family members.
I’m sure my sister would be screened, but she ages (64) out of most past screening requests.
I chose other as I don’t know what family was defined as (extended or primary) and my desired answer was not available.
I know my brother, the only primary family remaining, would have little interest, but I am unsure of extended family members.
I answered that nobody wants to be screened, but I was answering based on my immediate family. I did let my deceased type-1 diabetic cousin’s 35 year old son know he can be tested for his likelihood of becoming type-1 diabetic. He said he may be tested as he was always curious if he had a chance.
In my immediate family, both my son and I are T1D’s. After my son was diagnosed, his older sister was tested for the antibodies, but she didn’t have them. My husband has neve been tested, and neither have my siblings. I have a sister who was diagnosed as Type 2.
As a T1D, if I had children I’d have them screened-but I have none because when I was child-bearing age (20+ years ago), it felt too dangerous. My brother and sister (in their 50s & healthy) don’t seem interested and are presumably safe from T1D at this point.
No, none of my close family has been screened. I have one natural-born son and he has only 1 child. He will not agree to screening (he’s an adult so his decision). My granddaughter is now 18 and can decide for herself if she wants screened. She may be willing.