The disease that never happened
Prediabetes is not a declaration that diabetes will definitely happen. It is a signal.
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Prediabetes is not a declaration that diabetes will definitely happen. It is a signal.
Your body is giving you valuable information while there’s still time for lifestyle changes.
I recently saw a patient with multiple health problems and, af ter she rattled off her various ailments, aches and pains, we discussed her medications and upcoming treatment for osteoporosis, an injection called Denosumab, given in the back of the arm every six months.
She remarked, “If only I had been more diligent with my calcium and Vitamin D supplements.”
If only.
It is a comment I hear often in the clinic, usually after the question, “How could I have prevented this?”
We often think of medicine through its most dramatic moments. We remember the patient whose life was saved after a heart attack, the complicated surgery that repaired a broken bone, or the treatment that helped someone overcome cancer. These are powerful stories, and they deserve to be celebrated.
But there is another side of medicine that is quieter. It does not always have a dramatic turning point or an emotional ending. It is the story of the diabetes that never developed, the hip fracture that never happened, or the kidney failure that never came. It is the story of someone who continued working, traveling, playing with grandchildren, and living an ordinary life because something was recognized early enough to change the future.
That is the power of prevention.
Take prediabetes. Many people hear the word and immediately focus on “diabetes.” They feel disappointed, frightened, or even defeated, as if the diagnosis has already been made. But perhaps the most important part of the word is actually “pre,” meaning “before.”
Before the blood sugar becomes uncontrolled. Before complications involving the eyes, nerves, heart, or kidneys. Before the heart attack, stroke or dialysis.
Prediabetes is not a declaration that diabetes will definitely happen. It is a signal. It is the body giving us information at a time when lifestyle changes, weight management and proper medical guidance can still make a meaningful difference.
The same is true for our bones.
When patients are told they have osteopenia or low bone mass, the first reaction is often fear. They ask, “Does this mean I have osteoporosis?” Not necessarily.
What it means is that we have discovered a change before the worst outcome has happened. The goal is not simply to wait until bones become fragile enough to break. The goal is to protect strength, improve balance, prevent falls, optimize nutrition and recognize who may need closer monitoring or treatment.
Because when it comes to bone health, the greatest success is not always repairing a fracture. Sometimes, it is helping someone avoid that fracture altogether.
Our kidneys tell a similar story. Early kidney disease can be silent. A person may have no pain, no swelling, and no obvious symptoms. Without testing, they may never know that small changes have started.
But finding these changes early gives us time. Time to control blood pressure. Time to manage blood sugar. Time to adjust medications and protect the kidney function that remains.
Patients ask why they need to act when they still feel perfectly fine. The answer is because prevention works best before something feels wrong. We do not maintain our homes only after they collapse or care for our cars only after the engine fails. We understand that small actions today can prevent bigger problems tomorrow.
Our bodies deserve the same care.
Some of the greatest victories in healthcare will never appear dramatic. There may be no emergency avoided that anyone remembers, no hospital stay that becomes part of the family history, no frightening moment that changes everything in an instant.
Instead, there is simply more time. More birthdays and holidays celebrated. More ordinary days enjoyed. More moments with the people we love.
And that is the kind of medical success worth celebrating too — the quiet victory of a disease that never happened.
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