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In What Ways Is Cord Blood Special?

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Prapti Chauhan
In What Ways Is Cord Blood Special?

During your pregnancy, the baby in your womb gets all its essential oxygen and nutrients from you, via the umbilical cord. Without a doubt, this cord helps in nurturing the baby inside you. In fact, this cord grows with your baby, till such time that the baby pops out of you.


Earlier, during childbirth, the umbilical cord used to be treated as medical waste. With technological advancement, many expecting parents before the delivery of the baby, think of cord blood banking:


Here are the reasons why cord blood is special:


Cord Blood is Rich with Stem Cells


Yes! Various research has gone to prove that cord blood is a rich source of haematopoietic or blood-forming stem cells. They have the potential to specialise in other important cell types – Red blood cells (RBC), White Blood Cells (WBC), and platelets.


Regenerative Medicine


These stem cells have proven instrumental in treating 80+ life-threatening diseases such as cancer, inherited genetic disorders, and deficiencies in the immune system. However, the treatment of Fanconi Anaemia was considered the first successful stem cell transplant. Moreover, cord blood stem cells are being researched for the treatment of neurological defects like autism, Alzheimer’s, and cerebral palsy.


Risk-free Collection


After the baby’s delivery, the cord is cut and clamped a few inches from the baby. A sterile needle and bag are used to collect the cord blood. The process of cord blood collection does not come in between the process of childbirth. After the collection, the blood is sent for processing, quality testing, and cryopreservation or for cord blood banking.  In fact, the cord blood is cryopreserved or banked in a frozen state for 21 to 75 years of a baby’s life.


A Close-match is Found


The stored cord blood has the potential to treat diseases in the future. Before stem cell therapy takes place, it is important to match the stem cells of the donor and recipient. Although the cord blood matches perfectly with the baby, 60% to 75% near-perfect match is found with the siblings and the parents.


Chances of Less Complication


Complications like Graft Vs. Host Disease (GVHD) is found when a match is not found. In fact, GVHD is a situation where the transplanted tissues attack the patient’s body. However, since the umbilical cord blood stem cells are nascent, they are more tolerant towards mismatches, compared to the other sources of stem cells like bone marrow and peripheral blood.


Knowing the power of cord blood stem cells, more and more expectant parents like you are including cord blood banking in their birth plan. All you have to do is choose the options of banks – public or private. While in the public you might have to donate the cord blood, when you store the cord blood privately, you might have to pay a nominal price. That’s it! Expect to change your whole life.

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Prapti Chauhan
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