PAPILLION, Neb. (KMTV) — When leaders at JDRF changed the organization's name to Breakthrough T1D, they explained it better reflected the movement around cure-oriented research.
A young man from Papillion, Jackson, is one of the estimated 1.8 million Americans with Type 1 diabetes.
His mom, Jennifer, believes research and trials in motion will lead to a cure. She shared with 3 News Now's Mary Nelson how advancements over the last 20 years have changed and impacted their lives.
Continue reading for the broadcast transcript.
"My husband and I have three sons.
Our oldest son is 26 and living his best life.
And our youngest son, Caden, is a freshman in college.
Our middle son, Jackson is in Alabama and playing baseball there. He has Type 1 Diabetes.
It was two days after Easter and he just hadn't been feeling well.
Within half-an-hour, Jackson was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. They took his blood from a regular blood panel and his blood sugar was 902. So, basically 10 times the normal healthy limit," Jennifer Allred shared.
At the time, Jackson was only two years old.
"Those first days are kind of a blur. Even the first whole year," she explained.
Jennifer and her husband, Ken, kept track of their questions and observations in a notebook - just as they tracked Jackson's meals and readings.
Comparing a notebook to a cell phone is just how far things have come in 20 years.
"That's about the time when the artificial pancreas was really kind of getting traction. Learning about it, researching, the FDA approval process, all of that was exactly at the time that Jackson was diagnosed in 2005 and now, that is the standard of care.
When we first had his diagnosis, I think that's what we grieved the most was the life that he might not be able to have. Because our experience growing up was not active people, not people in sports.
And then we realized Jackson didn't care - that he was going to do all the things. And we would find a way to make it work," Jennifer continued.
Jackson plays ball with his pump, and a continuous glucose monitor, or CGM, gives the family, even states apart, visibility in real time into his numbers.
3 News Now's Mary Nelson asked Jennifer, after such developments, why she's held onto the notebook and other things from those early days.
"It's his story. It's his history. It's where we've come from. And it's really easy to forget... and it reminds us to be grateful," Jennifer said with a smile.
The Allreds will be honored at the Breakthrough T1D Gala, which KMTV sponsors. The family has raised more than $250,000 through the organization's annual walk, and they've also traveled to Capitol Hill to advocate for funding Type 1 diabetes research.