The concept of diabetes translation: addressing barriers to widespread adoption of new science into clinical care.

The National Commission on Diabetes (NCD) performed a landmark review of diabetes in the U.S. in 1975 (1). Its four-volume 10-part report contained extensive testimony from all aspects of the diabetic community, including scientists, clinicians, patients, and their families. The NCD promoted a concept that was new to the diabetes field: the concept of translation. The NCD recognized that a significant weakness in the nation’s overall approach to diabetes was its failure to “translate” research findings into practice. Scientific knowledge was accumulating through the efforts of many basic and clinical investigators, but the application of this knowledge to all patients with diabetes who might benefit from it was spotty. The NCD initially charged Diabetes Research and Training Centers (DRTCs) with the responsibility of conducting translation with the following citation: