Although several groundbreaking treatments for diabetes are in the pipeline, some patients still cannot get access to lifesaving insulin, which was discovered over a century ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports. 

Diabetes is rising across the globe, in part due to population ageing but also obesity and other lifestyle factors.  Currently, more than 420 million people are living with the disease, which impacts blood sugar levels, mainly in low and middle-income countries. 

In connection with World Diabetes Day marked this week, on 14 November, Andrei Muchnik of UN News’s Russian Language Service spoke to Slim Sluma, head of WHO’s Non-Communicable Diseases (NCD) Department.