>Hopefully this question won't sound too stupid, but what is the difference
>between insulinoma and diabetes?
 
That's not a stupid question at all! :)  The difference is under vs
overproduction of insulin.  With diabetes, the pancreas essentially quits
working and little or no insulin is produced, making blood sugar skyrocket.
(Insulin is the substance that breaks down glucose from the food we eat
into usable energy, and if there isn't enough, the glucose just stays in
the blood.) This leads to many problems and eventually death if left
untreated -- one of the big symptoms of diabetes is constant urination in
massive amounts as the body tries to rid itself of all this excess sugar
in the bloodstream.  (We had a fuzzy, Squeeker, who had diabetes, and we
discovered it because she suddenly began just flooding her litter box.)
Often the cause of diabetes is unknown, though some factors can contribute
to it.
 
With insulinoma, by contrast, one or more tumors in the pancreas are
*over*producing insulin.  This leads to dramatically *lowered* blood sugar
and eventual death if left untreated.  The seizures people speak of happen
because blood sugar is so low.  I once took one of my babies to the vet
because she was seizing, and the blood sugar came back as less than 10!
(Normal is around 100.)
 
One of the things that might be confusing you is that sometimes diabetics
will carry a chocolate bar or some hard candy for a quick sugar fix in case
their blood sugar becomes too low.  This, though, is actually not a symptom
of diabetes but of its treatment.  The candy is needed in case too much
insulin is administered.  It can be tough to keep blood sugar constant if
you're diabetic, and in some diabetics it's difficult to achieve a balance.
So the candy is a precaution in case they become overmedicated.
 
Hope this helps! :)
 
-Tasha
[Posted in FML issue 3129]