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The Top Ten Reasons To Bank Your Baby’s Cord Blood
Author:
Vincetastic
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Cord blood banking can help protect your family's health. Today, stem cells are being used to treat nearly 70 diseases, tomorrow countless more.
| # | Reason | Description |
| 1. | Current Uses | Doctors have been using cord blood in lifesaving treatments since 1988. Now, there are currently 70 diseases that can be treated with cord blood stem cells. Most notably these are Leukemia, Lymphomas, other cancers, Immune System Disorders, Blood Anemias and other blood disorders. You can view the entire list at: http://www.cordblood.com/cord_blood_banking_with_cbr/banking/diseases_treated.asp |
| 2. | Future Uses | Doctors are developing stem cell treatments for heart disease, juvenile diabetes, brain injury, and more. 15 years ago, when the technology was first being developed, there were only 10 diseases being treated, so the advancement has been very rapid. |
| 3. | Gaurenteed Match | The baby is a guaranteed match for their own stem cells. There is no certainty that another source of stem cells will be available, and using stem cells from the baby themselves doubles the likelihood of survival compared with using stem cells from an unrelated donor. |
| 4. | Easier To Match | Bone marrow is difficult to match between the donor and recipient because a "perfect match" is usually required. Cord blood immune cells, however, are less mature than in bone marrow and can be successfully used even when there is only a half-match. This means there is more opportunity for transplants between family members when cord blood is stored. Some studies have shown that overall survival rates for related transplants are more than double that of transplants from unrelated donors. |
| 5. | Other Family Members | Potentially other family members can also use the stem cells, including the mother and siblings. Whether or not you can use the stem cells is based something called HLA matching. It has been shown that cord blood transplants are successful, even when only three of the six loci match. With cord blood, the immune cells are less mature than those in bone marrow, and therefore siblings are twice as likely to be able to use each other's cord blood, compared to bone marrow. |
| 6. | Immediate Availability | Banking cord blood ensures that these stem cells can be immediately available if they are needed for treatment. Early treatment of many illnesses can minimize disease progression. According to researchers at Duke University, cord blood transplants could provide possible survival that is unlikely with the more time consuming process of unrelated marrow donation. |
| 7. | Vincent Will Keep Calling | The quickest way to get me to stop calling is to sign up in the program. |
| 8. | Peace Of Mind | Your baby's umbilical cord blood is rich in lifesaving stem cells that could protect your baby or other family members. Having access to your own family's cord blood has been shown to significantly improve outcomes compared to using cord blood from an unrelated donor. Although we hope your family will never have to use the stem cells, it’s good to know that you have them saved. |
| 9. | Family History | Although many of the treatable diseases are brought about environmental factors, if you have a family history of any diseases currently being treated or emerging treatable diseases, it is very important to consider saving the stem cells. The current research indicates the likelihood of use of the stem cells for the family in the child’s lifetime is about 1 in 200, and this is only based on the current uses of the stem cells. If your family has a history of these diseases, you have a higher risk of developing them. |
| 10. | Less GVHD | Overall, patients who receive cord blood transplants from a relative experience significantly less Graft vs. Host Disease (GVHD), a transplant rejection that is the leading cause of death in stem cell transplant patients. According to one study, the three-year cumulative incidence of chronic GVHD was 6% for matched siblings who received cord blood transplants versus 15% for matched siblings who received bone marrow transplants. |
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Comments
shenanigans? i think you have list envy.
Posted 3 months ago
I think Vince is abusing his admin rights to put this at the top. I call shenanigans.
Posted 3 months ago
holy crap. list #1!!!?
Posted 3 months ago
wow very nice
Posted 5 months ago