Insulin is a critical medicine for those living with diabetes. But what if access to this life-saving drug was cut-off due to a global conflict? This was a harrowing experience faced by Eva and Viktor Saxl during World War II.
Eva and Viktor were married in Prague, in 1940. The Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia forced the young Jewish couple to flee to Shanghai, China. Although the majority of Shanghai was under Japanese occupation at the time, those fleeing Nazi-occupied Europe were welcome to immigrate to a part of the city known as the International Settlement established after the unification of British and American settlements. While living in Shanghai as an English teacher, Eva was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. She was able to manage her condition with insulin from the local pharmacy.
Unfortunately, the Second World War would catch up to Eva and Viktor. After the attack on Pearl Harbour, the Japanese Army set its sights on the International Settlement. As a result, pharmacies in Shanghai were closed. With no legal options available, many turned to the black market for medicine. But after a friend died from contaminated insulin, Eva was reluctant to trust black market drugs.
Instead, Eva and Viktor were able to acquire a copy of Beckman’s Internal Medicine. This book described how Banting and Best purified insulin from dog and cow pancreases. As dogs and cows were scarce, Eva knit stockings to raise the money to buy water buffalo pancreases. Having met a Chinese chemist who was willing to lend them his laboratory, the Saxls began the process of making their own insulin.
This was an extremely risky endeavour. The Saxls had no way of knowing if the pancreases were contaminated with bacteria. They also were unsure of how potent the insulin was – and too much insulin could induce hypoglycemia, a condition of low blood sugar that can also be dangerous. After initially testing the insulin on rabbits, Eva took the plunge and tried the insulin herself.
Seeing that the insulin was successful in treating Eva, Viktor went to a nearby hospital. He gave insulin to two patients there, saving both of their lives. Eva and Viktor decided to open a clinic by the hospital and began making enough insulin to serve their community. In lieu of payment, Eva asked people to donate to the chemist who had lent them his lab.
After the war, the Saxls moved to New York City. Eva worked for the American Diabetes Association. Through television appearances and speeches, she dismantled misinformation and helped decrease the stigma surrounding diabetes. The Saxls lived in America until Viktor’s death in 1968. Eva then moved to Santiago, Chile to be with her brother. In Santiago, she advocated for underprivileged children and worked to get them access to medicine. Eva passed away in 2002.
Throughout her life, Eva showed tremendous bravery and ingenuity. But perhaps her greatest trait was her commitment to her community. She cared deeply about whether others had the same access to medicine as she did and she spent her life advocating for others.
— Written by Shivani Seth