The True Story of Insulin: Film Screening & Panel Discussion

You are invited to the first public screening of the thought-provoking new documentary, Dr. Banting’s Miracle Drug, a short film that delves into the true story of the discovery of insulin. The film will be followed by a panel discussion and catered reception with the film’s director and leading researchers from the UCSF Diabetes Center.

RSVP REQUIRED (Ticket Link below)

6:00 pm Screening of Dr. Banting’s Miracle Drug

What does it mean to be a scientific hero? That provocative question is at the heart of the strange-but-true story of the discovery of insulin in the early 1920s. Before insulin, type 1 diabetes condemned children to a horrible and certain death. But in one of the first miracles of modern medicine, insulin turned diabetes into a manageable chronic condition. History has given Canadian physician Frederick Banting the lion’s share of the credit in the discovery, but the real story is far more nuanced and dramatic. The mythic hero scientist might work for newspaper headlines and Hollywood films, but insulin shows us that the paths to revolutionary scientific discoveries are almost always far more complicated and ultimately more interesting.

6:30 pm Panel Discussion with Diabetes Center researchers

Following the film will be a thoughtful conversation between Diabetes Center director Matthias Hebrok, PhD, and colleagues Michael German, MD, and Steve Gitelman, MD. The researchers will discuss scientific myth-making and what it means to be a scientific hero as well as the exciting new technologies they believe will lead to the next “miracle” breakthrough in diabetes research.

7:15 pm Reception with researchers and filmmaker

After the panel, you are invited to join the discussion over drinks and light refreshments at in a reception with leading researchers and the filmmaker, Elliott Kirschner, formerly a producer for CBS News and the Emmy-winning “Dan Rather Reports”.