Stem cell storage - your baby's ultimate health insurance?

Discussion in 'Pregnancy & Labor' started by cheer, Apr 30, 2007.

  1. cheer

    cheer Silver IL'ite

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    Stem cell storage - your baby's ultimate health insurance?

    Stem cells - the basic building blocks of human life - are already being successfully used as part of the treatment for childhood leukaemia and various forms of cancer but they also have the potential to treat other serious diseases in future.
    These cells can be harvested easily from the umbilical cord of newborns at no risk to mum or baby and this has prompted the launch of at least four private stem cell banks in the UK. Stem cells banks have been operating for years in the US and in some states it is law to inform new parents about this potentially life-saving facility.
    Privately-run 'tissue banks' are now giving UK parents-to-be the option of having stem cells collected from their baby's umbilical cord straight after the birth and stored for up to 20 years, as a sort of 'living health insurance' against possible future disease. At least one company now also offers an adult service, where stem cells are taken from bone marrow instead of umbilical cord blood.
    'Stem cells are already being used to treat blood diseases such as leukaemia but they have an amazing potential for the future too,' says Stephen Baines, Sales and Marketing Manager of Future Health Technologies the only UK Private Cord Blood Bank to be accredited by the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) and the HTA (Human Tissue Authority).
    Prices vary for storage but you can expect to pay anything from around £900-£1,500 to have your baby's stem cells prepared, frozen and stored for up to 20 years under strict laboratory conditions, while costs for an adult start at around £2,000 upwards.

    So, what's it all about?

    Stem cells are the original building blocks of life for humans as they can turn themselves into the many different types of cells needed to make up a person, from skin tissue to major organs like the heart and lungs. They help an embryo in the womb develop into a fully grown baby in just nine months and are found in huge numbers in the blood that flows through the umbilical cord.
    These stem cells can be harvested easily at birth: separated from the blood sample and deep frozen and stored for up to 20 years. If that person then falls ill with a condition that could be helped or even cured by using their stem cells, they can be thawed and reused in future.
    Most diseases involve the death, destruction or damage of healthy cells, for example, cardiac cells in heart disease and pancreatic cells in diabetes, and research being done now suggests, although hasn't proved, that stem cells could, in future, be implanted at sites of damage to engineer replacement tissue. However, stem cells are already used to help after transplants and to treat leukaemia and other blood diseases effectively.

    For more visit below link-

    babyworld - pregnancy - antenatal tests - stem cell storage

    Related thread-
    http://www.indusladies.com/forums/personal-technology/5449-stem-cells-basics.html

    PS-I'm posting this one seprately so that pregnant ladies came to know abt the importance of stem cell.
     
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  2. cheer

    cheer Silver IL'ite

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    Stem cell cures for blindness?

    LONDON: British scientists plan to use stem cells to cure a common form of blindness, with the first patients receiving test treatment in five years.

    The pioneering project, launched on Tuesday, aims to repair damaged retinas with cells derived from human embryonic stem cells. Its backers say it involves simple surgery that could one day become as routine as cataract operations.

    They believe the technique is capable of restoring vision in the vast majority of patients with age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a leading cause of blindness among the elderly that afflicts around 14 million people in Europe.

    Some drugs, like Genentech Inc.'s Lucentis, can help the one in 10 patients with so-called "wet" AMD and U.S. biotech firm Advanced Cell Technology is looking at stem cells in other eye conditions. But there is no treatment for the 90 percent with "dry" AMD.

    AMD is caused by faulty retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells, which form a supporting carpet under the light-sensitive rods and cones in the retina.

    The new procedure will generate replacement RPE cells from stem cells in the lab, with surgeons then injecting a small patch of new cells, measuring 4 by 6 millimeters, back into the eye.

    Stem cell cures for blindness?-Health/Science-The Times of India
     
  3. GayathriSundar

    GayathriSundar Senior IL'ite

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    Saving your new-born's Cord Blood

    To all the pregnant Indus Ladies,
    Congratulations!
    I would like you all to consider the option of saving your baby's cord blood. There is a lot of literature on the pros and cons of saving the cord blood on the internet.
    My husband and I attended Child birth classes here in USA and were convinced of the merits of saving our baby's cord blood. This does not harm/hurt the baby in any way.
    We consider it as a future-health insurance; similar to having an auto, medical or home insurance.
    Please remember that this is a very personal decision.
    Good Luck!
    Gayathri
     
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  4. dheepu81

    dheepu81 New IL'ite

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    Re: Saving your new-born's Cord Blood

    Hi Ladies,

    Can anyone explain.........what cord blood banking means.......and wht are the advantages......im not understanding.

    thanks
    dheepa
     
  5. cheer

    cheer Silver IL'ite

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    3 people like this.
  6. GayathriSundar

    GayathriSundar Senior IL'ite

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    Re: Saving your new-born's Cord Blood

    Dheepa
    Please refer the link that Cheer has provided; it is very informative. Cord blood banking is the same as stem cell storage. Stem cells are harvested from the cord blood - the umblical cord.

    Cheer,
    Thank you for providing the clarification and the link to your post. I did a search in the forum with the words "cord blood banking" but not with "stem cell" prior to posting!
    Maybe the moderators can move my post under your thread!

    Thanks
    Gayathri
     
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  7. Sonum

    Sonum New IL'ite

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    Re: Saving your new-born's Cord Blood

    Here's another article with a different point of view. Dr. Sanjay Gupta (CNN, Time magazine) says its just a very expensive insurance policy. Unless your children are African Americans or some other minority who might have trouble finding a good genetic match, the odds that they will ever need their own cord blood are minuscule--perhaps 1 in 100,000.

    Tangled Cord - TIME


    On the other hand, there is a real need for cord-blood deposits at the 22 public banks that do their best to make stem cells available to anyone who needs them. To Donate Your Baby's Umbilical Cord Blood:

    Donate Your Baby's Umbilical Cord Blood
     
    Last edited: Jul 12, 2007
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  8. Anushree

    Anushree New IL'ite

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    Hey all,

    After reading all the posts on Stem cell storage, I am confused. I am in India....should I go for storage of stem cells ? Is it really worth it ? And where in India can I find a stem cell bank... ??:idontgetit:

    Anushree
     
  9. sanravi_1970

    sanravi_1970 Gold IL'ite

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    But i think we need to spend some money on storing of cord blood, either annually or for few months we need to pay some amount.
    What do u all think abt it?
     
  10. sunkan

    sunkan Gold IL'ite

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    Save Baby's Umbilical Cord For Future

    <table style="width: 494px; height: 282px;" bgcolor="#f9ecdc" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="10"><tbody><tr><td>[​IMG]
    [FONT=Arial,Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica]
    you can do that even before your little one is born. Isn't that wonderful?[/FONT]
    </td> </tr> <tr> <td>
    [FONT=Arial,Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica]You see, your baby's umbilical cord is a little powerhouse of life-saving cells called stem cells. These vigorous little cells can help treat several diseases.[/FONT]
    </td> </tr> <tr> <td>
    [FONT=Arial,Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica]When the situation arises, these stem cells can be a ready source of matching cells for not only your baby, but also the entire family.[/FONT]
    </td> </tr> <tr> <td>
    [FONT=Arial,Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica]All you need to do is preserve your baby's umbilical cord blood stem cells. We at LifeCell International would love to help you here.[/FONT]
    </td> </tr> <tr> <td>
    [FONT=Arial,Trebuchet MS,Verdana,Helvetica]Take that first step today! Register for a presentation at your convenience.[/FONT]
    </td></tr></tbody></table>
     

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