Cord blood is a rich, natural, controversy-free source of life-saving stem cells. Recent research has shown tremendous potential for cord blood stem cells to be used in regenerative medicine, which may cure even more diseases. Utilizing cord blood also has a more appreciated aspect to it. For instance, harvesting stem cells from bone marrow requires a painful surgical procedure and a nearly pristine match between donor and recipient. Cord blood stem cells, on the other hand, are readily obtained from the umbilicus and placenta at the time of delivery and cryogenically stored for future use by the donor, family member, or an unknown recipient; no painful surgery (for the most part). Cord blood also has a broader match potential than bone marrow, which means that the patient and donor do not have to be a “perfect match.” Cord blood stem cells are more resistant to infection, have fewer side effects after the transplant and require fewer transplant drugs than bone marrow stem cells. What can be better?! However, if your child is born with a genetically inherited disease, their cord blood will also carry that same genetic make-up; rendering the cord blood unusable.
Today, there are over 80 diseases being treated with cord blood stem cells (ie. Leukemia, Lymphoma, Multiple myeloma, Hodgkin’s disease, Retinoblastoma, Solid tumors; Sickle cell anemia, Thalassemia Aplastic anemia, Fanconi anemia, Diamond-Blackfan anemia, Amegakaryocytosis Histiocytosis; Severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID), Purine nucleoside phosephorylase deficiency, Reticular dysgenesis, Wiskott-Aldrish syndrome, DiGeorge syndrome, Kostmann syndrome, Omenn syndrome; Adrenoleukodystrophy, Krabbe disease, Hunter syndrome, Hurler syndrome, Sanfilippo syndrome, Scheie syndrome, Sly syndrome, Lesch-Nyhan syndrome; Osteopetrosis, Evan syndrome).
There are two ways to store cord blood from a placenta: privately or publicly. If you store privately, the cord blood can only be used for your own use; but requires a storage fee. Here is a list of private Cord Blood Banks: Viacord.com, cordblood.com, alphacord.com, cryo-cell.com. If you store publicly, there are No storage fees, but anyone in need and happens to be a close match can use the cord blood. Some doctors may charge a collection fee, however.
Some private storage vendors have even suggested storing Cord Tissue; since different types of stem cells are available within the tissue, providing aid to any tissue diseases you may face in the future. Either way, cord blood/tissue is the way of the future. There are so many benefits that come with preserving something that would normally get thrown out.
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