A NEW superhero is launching a lifesaving campaign in glorious technicolor to help young people in Hampshire in their fight against diabetes.

Marvel-style superhero, Gary, is a secret weapon being launched by doctors in Hampshire in the quest to help children and teenagers understand type one diabetes.

He is the latest star of a new comic called Type 1: Origins developed by clinicians in Southampton.

His story is based on the title of the huge popular Marvel series Wolverine: Origins and has been developed by the help of a leading publishing company.

The character is the brainchild of Dr Mayank Patel, of University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, and Dr Partha Kar, of Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust, with a group of young patients and the help of publishing company Revolve Comics.

Type one diabetes, which usually develops before the age of 40 and affects around 400,000 people in the UK, occurs when the body is unable to produce insulin to regulate the level of sugar in the blood, known as blood glucose.

Too much glucose can lead to organ damage and, as there is currently no cure, patients are required to take insulin on a daily basis and make healthy lifestyle per cent of the total number of people with the condition, type 1 diabetes is often confused with type 2, which is often linked to obesity and more common in older people.

Gary is based on Wolverine, who is a mutant – a sub-species of a human – born with superhuman powers such as the ability to heal and regenerate damaged parts of his body and has served as a member of Marvel’s X-Men, a team of superheroes who fight for peace and equality.

In the story Gary comes to terms with his diagnosis and his ‘special powers’ of shock, surprise, acceptance and understanding of how he will cope.

Dr Patel, who is based at Southampton General Hospital, said there is often misunderstanding between the two strains of diabetes and said: “As a group, people with type one diabetes can therefore feel excluded and deal with ignorance about their disease on a regular basis, which can be frustrating, if not exhausting.

“The hope is that this comic book provides another means of spreading the type one diabetes message through art and that the story will inform and educate anyone who reads it.”

He added: “Readers who are newly-diagnosed, they will feel more empowered to look after themselves if not already. It is possible to live a long, healthy life with type one diabetes.”

Dr Kar who is based at the Queen Alexandra Hospital and is also associate national clinical director for diabetes for NHS England said it puts the challenges of type one diabetes out into the public domain in a novel way.

Danny McLaughlin, founder of Revolve Comics, based in Derry, Northern Ireland, said: “The comic is designed to engage and inform, in a more hopeful and warming way, to the lifestyle changes of living with type one diabetes, specifically for the teenage age group.

“The story follows a young man as he journeys through what would be a typical situation for any young person who would be diagnosed with type one from symptoms, to diagnosis, to living with it – but it’s done with a bit of fun.”

The comic is launched online today at revolvecomics.com.

The launch follows the recent release of figures which showed that the number the diabetics in Southampton having to go undergo amputations is twice the national average.

Public Health England data, shows there were 165 amputations in the Southampton Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) area between March last year and April 2012 – compared to 148 amputations between March 2014 and April 2011.

But health chiefs have launched a raft of initiatives aimed at tackling the rapidly growing condition.