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How To Store The Life Saving Cord Blood
No doubt there are other sources of stem cells like Bone marrow and Peripheral Blood which are used to help cure individuals with blood disorders. However, bone marrow has its disadvantages like a) It is extremely difficult to match the Bone Marrow. b) Often bone marrow carries with it infections the donor has previously contracted. Graft vs. host disease (GVHD) is the leading cause of mortality in bone marrow transplantation. c) Bone Marrow is often rejected by an individual’s own immune system. For these reasons many people are now resorting to the usage of stem cells retrieved from the cord blood after it has been clamped, following the birth of the baby. Umbilical cord blood is rich in stem cells, the building blocks to all other cells in the blood and immune system. These valuable cells can now be cryogenically preserved as a form of "biological insurance." While stem cells are the same disease-fighting cells normally found in bone marrow, umbilical cord blood's stem cells are immature cells, less immunologic ally selective than those of marrow stem cells. Your baby's umbilical cord blood is a perfect match for your child, and carries no risk of rejection. Rejection is the number one complication for unrelated transplants. It is immediately available if ever needed, there is no need to search for a donor. Cord blood is not only beneficial for the child but is insurance for other family members too. The child's cord blood may be used for the mother of the child (ex: women who develop breast or gynecological cancers), or possibly for other children in the same family. Many children's lives have been saved by the cord blood from their newborn brothers or sisters. The cord blood can also be donated to save the lives of others provided it matches with the recipients blood. These days there are mainly two ways of getting the Cord Blood of your baby stored. Storing of this Blood is referred to as Cord Blood Banking. You can either donate the cord blood to a Public Cord Blood Bank or save it in a Private Cord Blood Bank Generally a private bank will collect and store your baby’s stem cells exclusively for the future use of your family. However, in addition, some of these private banks also store a part of your baby’s blood in their publicly accessible bank where it is accessible to other patients for allogeneic transplant. This is why now-a- days many Cord Blood Bank are also serving a dual purpose. People can donate their baby’s cord blood stem cells to a public bank, much like donating blood, so that they can be used by anyone that needs them. When people choose to do this, there’s no guarantee that any of their baby’s stem cells will be left should they need them in the future. These Banks store the whole blood in bags. There are fewer steps involved when handling bags. A 1cc sample is stored for future testing purposes so that the entire blood sample does not need to be defrosted. The cord blood is labeled with three identifying markers and then slowly frozen at a controlled rate in a programmable liquid nitrogen freezer. It is then immersed in liquid nitrogen where it is kept at a constant temperature of -196 degrees Celsius and stored in a monitored cryogenic freezer. The freezer requires no electrical power because the liquid nitrogen freezes the blood; therefore, power outages pose no problem. Talk to your doctor about your desire to store your child's cord blood. Make sure your have completed all of your prenatal testing for HIV, hepatitis B and C and syphilis. Complete and send your registration forms. When you receive your kit, read over all the material and pack it in your suitcase, keeping it at room temperature to take to the hospital. Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com Cord Blood Banking enables you to secure a better and healthy life of your family from deadly diseases For more information on Cord Blood and Cord Blood Storage or Log on to www.cordbloodinfo.org/cord-blood-storage.html for more details. |
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