PET/CT Study Links Beta-Cell Mass to Type 1 Diabetes Duration
Published in Diseases!, Journals, Scanners and Imaging.
Publication date: October 9, 2026.
The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging highlighted a PET/CT study of insulin-producing beta cells in its October 9 briefing on research published ahead of print in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine.
Researchers examined 26 people with type 1 diabetes. Participants diagnosed less than seven years earlier had greater beta-cell mass, larger pancreases and less pancreatic fat than those with longer disease duration. Beta-cell mass was also associated with insulin-producing function, according to the society’s summary.
These findings suggest that molecular imaging could help researchers characterize differences in the pancreas across stages of type 1 diabetes. However, comparisons between people with different disease durations do not establish how an individual’s beta cells change over time or whether a treatment can preserve them.
The small study does not demonstrate improved patient outcomes or establish PET/CT as a routine diabetes test. Larger studies and follow-up would be needed to assess its clinical usefulness.
Sources: SNMMI research briefing, October 9, 2026; Journal of Nuclear Medicine study.