A baby's umbilical cord is full of stem cells so umbilical cord blood donations are becoming an important part of a mother's pregnancy. The umbilical cord does not contain the mother's blood, it is simply the no longer needed baby's blood. If you can picture a water hose, when you turn off the water, there is still some remaining in the hose - the same is true of the umbilical cord.
Stem cell technology is being trialled on people with spinal cord damage and various cancers such as leukemia. One day they hope to be able to take stem cells and grow new organs like a liver or heart. The best stem cells to use are those taken from a new born baby's umbilical cord. This is why umbilical cord blood donations are important
To collect donated cord blood the nurse or midwife uses a syringe to draw out the blood before the umbilical cord is disposed off. This is better than just throwing the umbilical cord and the umbilical cord blood out. Once collected, the cord blood is sent away to have the stem cells removed for storage.
As a parent, you have two options for cord blood collection. The first is to donate cord blood. The umbilical cord blood is sent to a central cord blood registry. They often have a waiting list of patients and scientist looking for stem cells. The most common use is for the treatment of juvenile leukemia where it has a high success rate.
You can also have the cord blood stem cells stored or 'banked' for future use by your family. Cord blood has been used to treat siblings as well as the baby itself. Collection will cost around $2000 with an annual fee of around $100.
Research is being undertaken to test stem cells and their ability to repair spinal problems and restore movement to para/quadriplegics. More than seventy diseases can be treated using stem cells many of them being cured in the long term. The lack of umbilical cord blood donations is creating problems with one in five hundred births donating cord blood - the remaining four hundred and ninety-nine births are having their cords and the cord blood thrown out.
To increase the amount of cord blood collected parents are urged to use any available services for donating cord blood after your child has been born. If the service is not offered then ask the hospital or midwife. There are agencies that specialize in the collection of cord blood either for public cord blood banking or for personal use at a later time.
The more people who donate cord blood, particularly for research, the more likely it is that science will find ways to cure diseases such as juvenile diabetes, brain injuries and spinal column injuries. Why waste a valuable resource by throwing it into a hospital incinerator when it could be used to save lives. The umbilical cord - who would have thought that cord blood stem cells could do so much? If you know someone who is pregnant, get them to donate cord blood.
Stem cell technology is being trialled on people with spinal cord damage and various cancers such as leukemia. One day they hope to be able to take stem cells and grow new organs like a liver or heart. The best stem cells to use are those taken from a new born baby's umbilical cord. This is why umbilical cord blood donations are important
To collect donated cord blood the nurse or midwife uses a syringe to draw out the blood before the umbilical cord is disposed off. This is better than just throwing the umbilical cord and the umbilical cord blood out. Once collected, the cord blood is sent away to have the stem cells removed for storage.
As a parent, you have two options for cord blood collection. The first is to donate cord blood. The umbilical cord blood is sent to a central cord blood registry. They often have a waiting list of patients and scientist looking for stem cells. The most common use is for the treatment of juvenile leukemia where it has a high success rate.
You can also have the cord blood stem cells stored or 'banked' for future use by your family. Cord blood has been used to treat siblings as well as the baby itself. Collection will cost around $2000 with an annual fee of around $100.
Research is being undertaken to test stem cells and their ability to repair spinal problems and restore movement to para/quadriplegics. More than seventy diseases can be treated using stem cells many of them being cured in the long term. The lack of umbilical cord blood donations is creating problems with one in five hundred births donating cord blood - the remaining four hundred and ninety-nine births are having their cords and the cord blood thrown out.
To increase the amount of cord blood collected parents are urged to use any available services for donating cord blood after your child has been born. If the service is not offered then ask the hospital or midwife. There are agencies that specialize in the collection of cord blood either for public cord blood banking or for personal use at a later time.
The more people who donate cord blood, particularly for research, the more likely it is that science will find ways to cure diseases such as juvenile diabetes, brain injuries and spinal column injuries. Why waste a valuable resource by throwing it into a hospital incinerator when it could be used to save lives. The umbilical cord - who would have thought that cord blood stem cells could do so much? If you know someone who is pregnant, get them to donate cord blood.
About the Author:
Cord blood banking is the way of the future. Donating cord blood is something that all new mothers can do with little effort. Parenting is all about protecting our children, donating cord blood is one step.
No comments:
Post a Comment