We live in a strange world where sometimes ethics take over from common sense. I can fully understand the problems some people have with the concept of stem cells, particularly when they are collected from fetuses after pregnancy terminations.
Of course, if that pregnancy had been allowed to continue the resultant birth would have provided far more in the way of stems cells than that obtained through an unborn fetus. I am not advocating for or against terminations here, just stating an fact.
With every newborn baby comes an umbilical cord and placenta. These are full of blood that they baby no longer requires, blood that is full of stem cells. After delivery, the umbilical cord is cut close to the baby’s stomach. This is done once the baby has been successfully delivered and is no longer relying on the cord for food or oxygen. The opposite end of the umbilical cord is attached to the placenta and once that has exited the body, the whole lot is generally disposed of as hospital human waste.
The blood found in that umbilical cord is full of stem cells. Stem cells are actually the basic building blocks of human life. Once an egg has been fertilized, stem cells start the growth of every part of our body. In some strange way, each stem cell seems to have a particular role. It will become a heart, or a kidney, or anyone of the umpteen thousand other cells found in human body.
Scientists are now trying to find out exactly how stem cells work. Why does one stem cell develop into a kidney while another develops into a liver, or heart or another part of the body. More importantly, how can they encourage a stem cell to grow a new heart or kidney.
What is known is that children with some forms of leukemia have been treated with stem cells and had their disease reversed. There have been a few similar situations in adults. Scientist feel that with further research, they may be able to unlock the stem cell’s triggers, thereby regrowing nerves in para/quadriplegics, those with various diseases such as Alzheimer’s, motor neuron and perhaps even type one diabetes.
There is a lot of excitement over what stem cell therapy can do for those that are sick or impaired. Of course, like all treatments that involve the transfer of human tissue from human to an other, there are the problems associated with rejection and blood matching. Stem cells do at least have a lower rejection factor than more mature cells.
What has become a growing industry is that of cord blood banking for personal use. This is now big business with fees for this service running into thousands of dollars. The object of the exercise is to bank baby’s cord blood for future use. The theory is that if baby develops any serious problems in later life (like leukemia), they will have access to their own stem cells to help with the treatment. To date, hundreds of people have stored their baby’s blood, but few have found it necessary to make a withdrawal. For those who have, the results have been extremely good.
Should you bank your baby’s cord blood. It’s a personal decision and certainly for those that have a family history of medical problems, storing stem cells may offer some benefit into the future particularly as science finds new ways to use these cells. For the majority of people, it could be a waste of money. They may be better off donating their baby’s cord blood so that others can benefit from the research and the stockpiles available for treatments. The money saved could ensure your child received a decent preschool to college education.
With five kids we have learned a lot so when it comes to dealing with childhood problems we’ve seen it all. Visit our site if you would like more information on umbilical cord blood banking or childhood problems.
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