Amidst all the other do’s and don’ts, expecting parents have yet another decision to ponder on! That of cord blood banking. Keeping in mind the innumerable success stories that are circling round the globe, of how sibling’s cord blood stem cell has saved her elder or younger sister’s life to miraculous recovery within the family, cord blood cell banking is akin to opting in for a biological insurance. And on the other end of the spectrum is the reality that the process is an expensive one. So, when caught between the perils of high price and the possibility of cure (should any adverse disease were to occur), expecting parents often gets befuddled and unable to decide, if cord blood banking is worth it.
Let’s start by counting the benefits.
The blood in the placenta and the umbilical cord, which is approximately 100 millimetres in average, is a vital source rich in blood-forming stem cells, that has proved helpful in the treatment of several life-threatening ailments that includes names like Type 1 and 2 diabetes, immunological disorders, lymphoma, leukaemia, severe brain and spinal cord injuries, chronic cancers and many more. And what has really got the world pause and ponder whether they should say yes to this process, is the recent cures in ailments like Parkinson’s disease, autism and even cerebral palsy.
Cord blood stem cell banking and transplant also holds the key to the success of regenerative medicine. This simply indicates making use of stem cells to be able to regenerate tissues and organs, that haven’t been functioning in the optimal way, leading to macular degeneration which in certain chronic situations, also result in a loss of vision. Hence, today, doctors, medical experts and researchers are making use of cord blood stem cells to commission clinical trials in many phases to discover miraculous treatments to diseases and bodily disorders that otherwise is considered to be irreversible.
According to Joanne Kurtzberg, M.D. Pediatric Bone Marrow, Stem Cell Transplant Program, Duke University, the results on cord blood transplant over the past decade has been immensely successful. Patients have been benefiting to a great extent, more so because of the advancement in the world of medical science as a whole. In addition to that, hospitals are also providing advanced supportive care to patients once the transplant is over.
The other reason to say yes to cord blood banking is that, the sample you allow to store will always be at your access should you ever need it. However, this holds true when you only store your baby’s cord blood in a private bank. There’s a charge that families need to pay when enrolling for this process along with storage fees for the maintenance of the cord blood sample.
Therefore, whether you are opting in cord blood banking, wither private or public, you are actually saying yes to regenerative medicine and revolutionary cures. Private banking enables you to use it for personal requirement. And public banking extends it to the one who requires. Either ways, it’s a meaning gesture. So public or private, cord blood banking is worth it.
Sources:
https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg23531390-100-banking-a-babys-cord-blood-may-save-their-life-is-it-worth-it/
https://www.parents.com/pregnancy/my-baby/cord-blood-banking/is-cord-blood-banking-worth-it/
https://www.cordbloodbanking.com/banking/faq/