There is blood in the umbilical cord after a child is born and also in the placenta. This blood contains special cells that are of immense benefit as far as curing certain diseases are concerned.
One can easily store the blood containing the cells for use at a later stage of life. This blood can be useful for the child or anyone in the family in case they suffer from any disease. In this article, more about this topic has been explained in brief in the paragraphs that follow. The private cord blood banking companies encourage storing this blood.
Finer aspects of cord blood banking
Hematopoietic stem cells are present in the cord blood. These cells can transform into different types of blood cells that can, in turn, be useful for treating and can also cure many diseases. The diseases include metabolic diseases, certain types of cancer, immune deficiencies, and disorders related to blood. In fact, extensive studies have proved and many are still underway that these blood cells can work miracles for many that suffer from diseases.
However, the types of diseases that these blood cells help to cure do not occur frequently. As such, it may not be of much use for your child, but it may be of importance to other children or a family member. However, if a genetic disease runs in your family, and there are chances of someone developing the disease, it is best to store it.
But if the situation is not as such, it does make sense in donating to the cord blood bank. There are several courses by which you can do it if you choose. You will be able to get an entire list of cord blood banks, both private and public.
More about cord blood banks
You will find that there are innumerable donors that have donated the stem cells to these banks worldwide. If you have decided to give the cells to a public bank, you do not have to incur any cost on characterization, cryopreservation, and procurement. But the case differs when it comes to private banks. Also, chances of use of stem cells from private banks are not very high, and your insurance carrier will not cover the cost incurred for all of the above processes.
There are accredited bodies that weigh the quality of services offered by the private and public banks. In terms of the quality-related reviews of both types of banks, private banks are less regulated.
The concept of cord blood banking is not new. A study in 2013, revealed that 30,000 HSCTs or hematopoietic stem cell transplants were performed. Doctors used approximately 57% of it for treating malignant disorders, 6% for various immunodeficiency diseases. Another 32.5% was useful for treating hemoglobinopathies, and around 1.5% for different ailments.
Regardless of whether you are preserving, stem cells with a private bank or public one, make sure you carry out due diligence before you entrust the stem cells to someone else.
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