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Donate to a discovery
Our research fuels diabetes discoveries.
From breakthroughs under the microscope to new treatments reaching people living with diabetes around the world, our research transforms tiny discoveries over years and decades into life-changing impact.
We’re funding research into type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, gestational diabetes, rarer types of diabetes, complications, and everything in between. Our research is unravelling the complex causes of diabetes, finding new ways to help people manage their diabetes each day - and ultimately, setting us on the path to a cure.
We’re backing breakthroughs that will make a difference.
The researchers behind these discoveries are vital. But so are you, because your support helps spark our science.
If you raise £500 or more, you can Donate to a discovery. This means that you can choose to put your money towards a specific research project in an area that means the most to you.
Or you may want to donate to our general research pot, not to specific projects. That’s fine too. In fact, doing so helps us to put money towards those research areas that need it the most.
Either way, we want to say a big thank you.
Supporter testimonials
"Diabetes UK enabled me to channel donations in memory of my late husband to support research that is considering how to prevent heart disease and stroke amongst people living with type 1 diabetes. Diabetes UK worked with me to identify a research project that I know my husband would have been pleased to support."
– Dr A M Timpson
'"The Mid Essex Diabetes Support Group has donated to research funded by Diabetes UK because the projects we’ve supported provide us with hope that there will be a cure for diabetes one day and that, if we develop diabetes complications in the meantime, there will be a medicine out there to help us."
– The Mid Essex Diabetes Support Group
"Supporting research is extremely important to our group. Ann and Pat have daughters who were diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at a young age, as was I. Research is crucial for improving the lives of those who are living with diabetes. We are honoured to be able to fund projects which help develop new treatments, reduce complications, improve care, and hopefully someday find a cure."
– Rhonda, Dungannon Diabetes Group
"The transformational research Diabetes UK funds would not be possible without its supporters. Donations like yours will help us continue making strides in finding new ways to treat diabetes and prevent it, protecting people from its consequences."
– Professor Kamlesh Khunti, Diabetes UK-funded researcher
Research is our hope for a better future for everyone living with diabetes.
But we can’t fund it without you. In the last 10 years, your donations have allowed us to invest £63 million into 340 world-class diabetes research projects.
And we can’t stop now. We have more research to do and more life-changing breakthroughs to make.
Aside from Donating to a discovery, there are lots of other ways you can help us get there.
Donate to a discovery FAQs
How can I find project a to donate to? At any one time, we’re funding around 130 research projects. You can visit our project web pages and use the filters to choose a project.
Can I donate to more than one project? Absolutely, just let us know their names and how you’d like your donation be split between them.
What do I do once I’ve chosen a project? To Donate to a discovery, or to our research generally, get into contact with us in a way that suits you. You can:
To pay by cheque, send a letter stating the name of the project you’d like to donate to, the phrase ‘donate to a discovery,’ and your address, with the cheque made payable to: Diabetes UK, Wells Lawrence House, 126 Back Church Lane, London, E1 1FH.
You can also support a specific research project under Donate to a discovery by using the fundraising platform JustGiving. It’s useful if you let us know you’d like to use JustGiving to collect donations early on as it helps us assign your donations to your chosen research project/s.
What happens after I Donate to a discovery? After you’ve donated to the research project/s that you most want to support, we’ll take care of your donation and keep you in the loop about the research you’re backing.
You’ll be sent a thank you letter and certificate, and if you wish, your name displayed on the web pages of your chosen project/s.
We’ll also let you know how the research you’re helping to fund is progressing. You’ll receive updates about how the researcher is doing on their journey to a diabetes discovery - that you’ve helped make possible.
