"If it wasn't for that initial support, the MY DIABETES study would have never happened."

Dr Shivani Misra, Consultant in Metabolic Medicine

People with diabetes may have different types and ethnic background can impact risk and presentation of the condition. But a lack of awareness among healthcare professionals about a rare form of diabetes is leading to many cases being mis-diagnosed.

Dr Shivani Misra’s research outlined how cases of maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY), which affects only 20,000 to 40,000 people in the UK, are often missed in south Asian and African-Caribbean people and mistakenly diagnosed as the more common type 1 or type 2 forms.

In her preliminary analysis, Shivani warned that some people may not be receiving the right treatment and suggested that broader criteria should be used to help identify MODY in non-white ethnic groups.

The MY DIABETES study attracted media attention after she presented her preliminary findings at an Imperial Academic Health Sciences seminar and Shivani is now using the results to stratify people with diabetes using biomarkers and genetics that improve methods of diagnosis in the Imperial Non-Classical Diabetes Clinical Service at St Mary’s Hospital.

Shivani said: “I’m so grateful to Imperial Health Charity for funding that first year of my research journey, which enable me to generate some pilot data. If it wasn’t for that initial support, the MY DIABETES study would have never happened.”

Inspired by Shivani's research story? Find out how you can apply for a fellowship to support your own research project