Autoimmune diabetes/ AE is there a connection

Yesterday my son called me and told me after his visit with his doctor he was diagnosed with autoimmune diabetes disease. He been taking insulin for diabetes for 14yrs. And l been dealing with AE disease by my rheumatologist and HE. So l was explaining to my son l was diagnosed with herpes zoster in 1978 and then viral encephalitis in 1997. Then my middle son was diagnosed with meningitis in 1997 also. But l was always told l didn't have diabetes. My husband family has diabetes so that's where he would have gotten that illness. I explained to him autoimmune means it your body fighting itself. He was telling me he hasn't had feeling in his legs for 2yrs, which can happen with diabetes as well as autoimmune disease. It is neuropathy which l am starting to experience so his doctor was telling him In Virginia they are doing a lot of research on autoimmune diseases. So his doctor is sending his test out to the mayo clinic. Isn't that something, so he said l told my doctor you went to the Mayo clinic. I don't know if anyone has experienced this before.