Identification of infants with increased type 1 diabetes risk for enrolment into primary prevention trials (GPADD-02)

A simple blood test at birth could identify children at high genetic risk of developing type 1 diabetes, years before any symptoms appear. Type 1 diabetes is a common chronic childhood disease, and its incidence is rising. Currently, most children are diagnosed only after their pancreas has already been severely damaged, meaning they face a lifetime of insulin injections and blood sugar monitoring. There is no way to prevent the disease. This study aims to find out what percentage of newborns carry specific genetic markers that put them at increased risk. Those identified could then be offered enrolment into primary prevention trials—studies testing whether early interventions can stop the disease from ever developing. If this screening approach works, it could transform type 1 diabetes from a condition that is caught too late into one that is anticipated and potentially prevented. The immediate impact would be on clinical trial recruitment: researchers could test preventive treatments in the children most likely to benefit. In the longer term, if any of those trials succeed, routine newborn genetic screening could become a standard part of childhood healthcare, quietly preventing a chronic disease that currently affects thousands of families.