One Hundred Years of Insulin for Some

This perspective article reflects on the 100-year history of insulin since its discovery in 1921, highlighting both scientific progress and persistent global inequities in access. While insulin has transformed diabetes care for many, the author shares ethnographic accounts from Belize, where patients like Mr. J. (who died at 21) and Ms. C. (who died at 36) faced severe barriers to obtaining insulin due to cost, misdiagnosis, and systemic neglect. The article critiques the narrative of linear progress, emphasizing how insulin’s commercialization, racial disparities, and lack of global health prioritization have left millions without life saving treatment. Advocacy efforts like the #insulin4all movement and the WHO’s Global Diabetes Compact offer hope, but the piece calls for systemic change to ensure equitable access in the next century.

This perspective article reflects on the 100-year history of insulin since its discovery in 1921, highlighting both scientific progress and persistent global inequities in access. While insulin has transformed diabetes care for many, the author shares ethnographic accounts from Belize, where patients like Mr. J. (who died at 21) and Ms. C. (who died at 36) faced severe barriers to obtaining insulin due to cost, misdiagnosis, and systemic neglect. The article critiques the narrative of linear progress, emphasizing how insulin’s commercialization, racial disparities, and lack of global health prioritization have left millions without life saving treatment. Advocacy efforts like the #insulin4all movement and the WHO’s Global Diabetes Compact offer hope, but the piece calls for systemic change to ensure equitable access in the next century.