Teplizumab is a drug that can treat people found to be in the early stages of type 1 diabetes, to hold off its development. It has been licensed for use in the UK in people aged 8 and over. But it’s not yet available in the NHS.
- What is teplizumab?
- Is teplizumab available in the UK?
- How do you take teplizumab?
- Side effects of teplizumab
- I already have type 1 diabetes. Could I benefit from teplizumab?
- How can I find out if I’m at risk of type 1 diabetes?
- Can type 1 diabetes be prevented?
- More information and support
What is teplizumab?
Teplizumab, also known by the brand name Tzield, was licensed in the UK in 2025. It's the world’s first-ever immunotherapy for type 1 diabetes.
Teplizumab helps slow the attack on insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas by calming down the immune system.
The treatment can delay the full development of type 1 diabetes in people who are in the symptomless, early stages of the condition by around three years.
This means teplizumab can help people spend extra years with blood sugar levels in a safe range and free from insulin therapy, carb counting, and low blood sugar, also known as hypoglycemia or hypos.
Is teplizumab available in the UK?
The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) have licensed teplizumab as safe and effective for peopled aged 8 and over in the early stages of type 1 diabetes. This means it can be prescribed in the UK. But it isn’t available through the NHS yet.
The next step is for the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to determine if and how it should be used within the NHS. We know NICE are assessing this at the moment.
How is teplizumab given and how often?
Teplizumab is taken as a fluid infusion into a vein through an intravenous (IV) drip in a hospital setting. It’s given once a day for 14 days.
Side effects of teplizumab
The MHRA have assessed teplizumab as safe based on evidence from clinical trials.
The most common side effects include a rash, low white blood cell count – which can increase your risk of infections – and headache.
Teplizumab is given in a hospital setting and side effects will be carefully monitored in anyone receiving it.
I already have type 1 diabetes. Could I benefit from teplizumab?
Teplizumab has only been licensed for use in the UK in people who have early-stage type 1 diabetes, before they’ve fully developed the condition.
But clinical trials have shown it could also help people newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, when around 20% of their beta cells remain alive.
Teplizumab has been found to protect these surviving beta cells so that people can continue to produce some of their own insulin for longer. This can make managing blood sugar levels easier and reduce the long-term risk of diabetes complications.
In the future, immunotherapies like teplizumab might also form part of a cure for type 1 diabetes in people who have lived with the condition for a long time.
Through our research and the Type 1 Diabetes Grand Challenge, we’re supporting scientists to develop treatments to replace or regenerate the beta cells that have already been destroyed in people with type 1. Once we can do this, immunotherapies could potentially be used alongside these cell therapies to protect new cells from further immune attack.
How can I find out if I’m at risk of type 1 diabetes?
Researchers can look for signals in the blood, called type 1 diabetes autoantibodies, that tell us the immune system has started to attack the pancreas. This gives researchers a way to find people who are almost certain to develop type 1 diabetes in the future.
You can find out if you, or your child has autoantibodies by taking part in screening studies. The ELSA study screens children aged 3-13 years across the UK, and the T1DRA study screens adults between 18-70 years.
Can type 1 diabetes be prevented?
At the moment, type 1 diabetes can’t be prevented.
But immunotherapies in combination with type 1 diabetes screening – to find people who are going to develop type 1 diabetes in the future – could offer a way to hold off and delay the full development of type 1 for as long as possible.
Further in the future, researchers hope we could extend this delay, maybe for life, so that type 1 diabetes never develops.
More information and support
Still have more questions? Or is there anything you're not sure about after reading this page? Contact our helpline on 0345 123 2399.
