New Personal Glimmer of Hope

[neil36]

I got in to MNKD over five years ago, based on the strong recommendation of a relative who was heavily invested. I was skeptical about the valuation, but was intrigued by the magnitude of the following, the emphatic recommendations of Nate and the strong credentials of Al. But I cut my losses about eighteen months into the investing disaster because I couldn’t find one doctor, pharmacist or diabetic who had even heard of Afrezza. I also followed the refills closely and saw major red flags in the data. I was down well over fifty percent and my take was that for the valuation to be justified, we would all need to be seeing people taking hits of Afrezza in restaurants on a regular basis.

Against my better judgement, I started accumulating MNKD again about a year ago. I am continuing to accumulate. My average cost per share is reasonably low and something I can live with compared to the massive investing hit I took back in the 2014-2015 timeframe. But I am still stunned by the lack of awareness of Afrezza among the diabetic community. I have felt like this product is only known among speculative investors.  At the risk of overstating the obvious, it has been a very frustrating and depressing investment and acceptance among the diabetic community seems almost non-existent.

But last week I was in a meeting where one of the attorneys had to step out multiple times one morning. Eventually he shared that he is a T1D and struggling with controlling his diabetes.  Then out of nowhere he shares that he has an appointment with his endocrinologist, who has been encouraging him to switch to an inhaled insulin and he is finally going to try it.

I was stunned. Someone I knew, actually brought it up on their own.  I asked him about it during a break and he said that his endo (Dallas area) had been working on him for a couple years.  The attorney was the one that was skeptical and “worried about the long-term side affects”.  But the T1D is so frustrated with his inability to control, that he is willing to give it a try.

For me it was a personal glimmer of hope in this painful journey. I still haven’t seen anyone whip out an inhaler in a restaurant, but someone I was working with brought up Afrezza during a business meeting.  I was also encouraged that it was the endocrinologist that was pushing him to try Afrezza. 

Just posting this personal anecdote to the pro boards community. It might be representative of the extreme caution among PWD to make this switch.  We aren’t anywhere close to mass adoption.  But it is possible that endos and patients are gradually opening their minds to this option.

[sweedee79]

Thank you so much for this.. we all need a glimmer of hope these days..

[sportsrancho]

Thank you neil, like sweedee says we need it. All we seem to do is argue over the same things:-) You bring a breath of fresh air!

[awesomo]

Great story, thanks for sharing.

It’s like the stories on human kindness, makes you feel good to hear them, but saddened that it’s not the norm.

[indigodaisy]

Jul 15, 2019 22:07:42 GMT -5 awesomo said:

Great story, thanks for sharing.

It’s like the stories on human kindness, makes you feel good to hear them, but saddened that it’s not the norm.

Actually, human kindness is the norm, it's just not what you hear in the news. I expect one day Affrezza will be the norm as well. GLTA

[longliner]

Keep in mind folks, the day Desisto was proposed as CEO he was declared poison by a vocal group. The same folks berated MC the day he was proposed as CEO, and they have not let up to date.

We saw the Sanofi shill exposed.

There are folks paid to destroy this company, that is an unfortunate fact.

I am not pleased with the alignment of compensation, nor the stock price.

I do however agree with indigodaisy human kindness is the norm.

Much of what we have witnessed here is bought and paid for, neither evil or kind, it is just their paycheck.

If I had less than a glimmer of hope, I would not buy at dawn.

[mytakeonit]

Oh No !!! I have so many shares as is ... do I have to join you? ... Well okay then. I'm In !!!

But, that's mytakeonit

[peppy]

Jul 15, 2019 20:33:01 GMT -5 neil36 said:

I got in to MNKD over five years ago, based on the strong recommendation of a relative who was heavily invested. I was skeptical about the valuation, but was intrigued by the magnitude of the following, the emphatic recommendations of Nate and the strong credentials of Al. But I cut my losses about eighteen months into the investing disaster because I couldn’t find one doctor, pharmacist or diabetic who had even heard of Afrezza. I also followed the refills closely and saw major red flags in the data. I was down well over fifty percent and my take was that for the valuation to be justified, we would all need to be seeing people taking hits of Afrezza in restaurants on a regular basis.

Against my better judgement, I started accumulating MNKD again about a year ago. I am continuing to accumulate. My average cost per share is reasonably low and something I can live with compared to the massive investing hit I took back in the 2014-2015 timeframe. But I am still stunned by the lack of awareness of Afrezza among the diabetic community. I have felt like this product is only known among speculative investors.  At the risk of overstating the obvious, it has been a very frustrating and depressing investment and acceptance among the diabetic community seems almost non-existent.

But last week I was in a meeting where one of the attorneys had to step out multiple times one morning. Eventually he shared that he is a T1D and struggling with controlling his diabetes.  Then out of nowhere he shares that he has an appointment with his endocrinologist, who has been encouraging him to switch to an inhaled insulin and he is finally going to try it.

I was stunned. Someone I knew, actually brought it up on their own.  I asked him about it during a break and he said that his endo (Dallas area) had been working on him for a couple years.  The attorney was the one that was skeptical and “worried about the long-term side affects”.  But the T1D is so frustrated with his inability to control, that he is willing to give it a try.

For me it was a personal glimmer of hope in this painful journey. I still haven’t seen anyone whip out an inhaler in a restaurant, but someone I was working with brought up Afrezza during a business meeting.  I was also encouraged that it was the endocrinologist that was pushing him to try Afrezza. 

Just posting this personal anecdote to the pro boards community. It might be representative of the extreme caution among PWD to make this switch.  We aren’t anywhere close to mass adoption.  But it is possible that endos and patients are gradually opening their minds to this option.

If you can get a message to him. 
He will need a continuous glucose monitor and these dosing instructions. 
I Admit It, I Inhale! Inhaled & Other Newer Insulins (Jeremy Pettus, MD)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=94HT41Hennk&list=PLN-L1716i5adlZPt0z6h6PVEI_9SgUj9K&index=6
Dr Pettus is a T1 who uses Afrezza. 

From Vdex: dosing:
www.seventhform.com/vdexdownloads/vdex-whitepaper-072817.pdf
page 22.

Comments
Afrezza’s speed of action is both a blessing and a curse. Clearly, it is a large factor in the safety of the
product, but for longer meals, you may need more Afrezza to keep the post prandial levels in check. We
recommend follow-on doses. For example, we advise with a standard meal to dose Afrezza 15-20
minutes after the start of the meal, and then another dose of the same size about 45 minutes later.
With very long meals, we have even advised patients to administer two follow-on doses, for very tight
control.

[neil36]

Thanks Peppy.  He currently uses a Libra GCM. It kept going off during our meeting, which is why he would step out. 

If he has his endo write a script today, I’ll pass along the dosing videos. I’m keenly interested in his experiences the first two to eight weeks. I think that is where a number of new patients get frustrated and give up and go back to what they are more familiar with.

[mnkdfann]

Jul 15, 2019 20:33:01 GMT -5 neil36 said:

But last week I was in a meeting where one of the attorneys had to step out multiple times one morning. Eventually he shared that he is a T1D and struggling with controlling his diabetes.  Then out of nowhere he shares that he has an appointment with his endocrinologist, who has been encouraging him to switch to an inhaled insulin and he is finally going to try it.

I was stunned. Someone I knew, actually brought it up on their own.  I asked him about it during a break and he said that his endo (Dallas area) had been working on him for a couple years.  

Hope it's not a case of the endocrinologist thinking that Exubera is still on the market. 

[neil36]

So the attorney was given a one month free sample package by his endo. He says he likes it so far, but he is only two days in.

More interestingly, he said his endo “is having dinner with the Chairman if the Board tonight”. So I’m assuming that is Kressa.

[neil36]

Received this text from the attorney a few minutes ago, along with his graph.

“Here is a snap of my levels for the day, and it’s definitely having a positive impact. I have only been using Afrezza since a week ago last Tuesday. I’ve never been in range this percentage of time.”

[cretin11]

Outstanding! Need more stories like this. Thanks for sharing.

[peppy]

Jul 26, 2019 22:09:07 GMT -5 neil36 said:

Received this text from the attorney a few minutes ago, along with his graph.

“Here is a snap of my levels for the day, and it’s definitely having a positive impact. I have only been using Afrezza since a week ago last Tuesday. I’ve never been in range this percentage of time.”

thank you Neil.

[neil36]

Update from the attorney a few minutes ago:

“I’ve only coughed a few times, nothing significant. The dosing for my normal planned meals is going well. I mostly start with an 8 and check later to follow up with a 4. Some of my dinners have been higher, so I’ve started trying out a 12 and that’s been going well. I think it may be a combination of my long lasting insulin wearing off and having a beer or two.

I have a script now for the $15/month promotion and expect to continue using even if/when the promo is discontinued. My out of pocket for the insulin it replaced was $75/month and overall I feel better using Afrezza.”