In the past decade, most new parents have been given a choice of banking their baby’s cord blood or donating it to a public storage bank.  This is a once in a lifetime opportunity that is available when your baby is born and before the umbilical cord is discarded.  Collecting cord blood from the umbilical cord is a five minute procedure and will not hurt the mother or more importantly, the baby.   Umbilical cord blood stem cells are now being used to treat many malignant and non-malignant diseases and new uses for stem cells are being discovered everyday!

A lot of people ask why they should preserve cord blood and the answer is simple.  As most women are aware, during pregnancy the umbilical cord is the lifeline between mothers and their unborn babies.  Most of the time, after the delivery the umbilical cord is cut and then discarded.  The stem cells that are in the cord blood are also discarded.   These stem cells are an exact genetic match for the child.  If you were to preserve them, you would be guaranteeing your child a source of perfectly matched stem cells in the event that they were to develop a life threatening disease that could be treated using these cells. 

Stem cells are used to treat a variety of diseases such as leukemia, Hodgkin’s disease, along with other cancers, blood diseases and some immune system disorders.  Researchers are striving to make stem cell transplants of use in fighting AIDS, Lupus, lung cancer and Multiple Sclerosis. The reason why they are so valuable is that stem cells have been known as the building blocks of blood and the immune system and also other tissues in our bodies.   They can also transform into other cell types such as red blood cells and white blood cells and platelets.  This is what makes them so valuable.   They can replace other cells in our body that are abnormal, weakened or ruined by disease. In fact one of the main uses of stem cells is to replace abnormal bone marrow cells.

Mention the term stem cell preservation to a crowd and you could be met with any number of responses anywhere from the admittedly uninformed, to the up-to-the-minute reader of the latest headlines on the subject.  Mention the term cord blood to the same group and most folks would respond by saying, “What”? How ironic that one of the easiest ways to contribute to the health and well-being of society is still largely unknown. How wonderful that the life giving gift of stem cell preservation is one that begins with the miracle of birth.

Stem Cell Preservation – Defined

Stem cell preservation is the gathering and saving of nutrient rich stem cells that are present in the body, especially the umbilical cord at birth. One immediate question you might have is why are stem cells so valuable? Importantly, stem cells are highly adaptable and can readily replicate into red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Red blood cells are important because they carry oxygen to all the cells in the body; white blood cells are responsible for fighting infection; and platelets aid in clotting when the body is injured. These components are the basic elements of healthy blood and a strong immune system.

Stem Cell Preservation – Going to the Source

After knowing what “stem cell preservation” is and why it is valuable, we ask the next question – where do we find stem cells? Modern medicine names three primary sources: the fertilized embryo, within bone marrow, and within the blood of an umbilical cord. In the first instance, there’s a great deal of controversy from an ethical standpoint.  In the second there is a reasonably high level of risk, and in the third there are no ethical concerns and no real risk to mother or newborn.

For years, bone marrow transplants have been a common practice yielding somewhat inconsistent results in the treatment for certain kinds of cancers and leukemia. The number one challenge of this treatment, though, is the need for donor and recipient to be an exact marrow match. On the other hand, with cord blood treatments, the need for an exact match does not exist as the stem cells drawn from cord blood are more adaptable. This unique usefulness places a high level of importance on effective stem cell preservation.

Cord Blood – The Simplest Source

Stem cell preservation as it relates to umbilical cord blood is fairly simple, albeit somewhat futuristic sounding. Shortly after the birth of your newborn, his or her umbilical cord is clamped and cut; blood is drawn and transported to a lab where it is cryogenically frozen at temperatures in the neighborhood of -190 degrees. There is no risk to mom and baby and the transfer to a state of preservation is safe and exact.  

Currently, stem cells are for the most part utilized in transplant medicine to regenerate a patient’s blood and immune system after they have been treated with chemotherapy and/or radiation to destroy cancer cells. Other more dynamic treatments are envisioned for the future as cord blood holds a very important place in stem cell preservation. Mother’s and their newborns are contributing to one of the most promising advances in medical technology everyday with the simple and safe methods of stem cell preservation.

Ask any new parent who has stored cord blood and they will be able to tell you all about storing their newborn’s umbilical cord blood for use in the future.  What happens though for people who do not have children or whose children were born before this potential life saving alternative was first offered?   There are storage banks that offer to preserve adult stem cells as well as umbical cord stem cells.
  
 
Stem cells are classified by four types of cells.  First, embryonic stem cells are from a human embryo.  Second, fetal stem which can be taken from aborted fetal tissue.   Use of both of these stem cells is very controversial, especially the embryonic stem cells.  Studies are constantly under way to see if this use is safe for the embryo.   The two more common and less riskier stem cells are third, umbilical stem cells, which are taken from the umbilical cord and the placenta, and, fourth, adult stem cells which come from bone marrow, adult peripheral blood and other body tissues. 
 

So what are adult stem cells?  In theory all stem cells except those that come from embryos are adult stem cells.  This includes the cells found in the umbilical cord and placenta.  The difference between stem cells that come from adult peripheral blood and bone marrow vs. umbilical cord and placenta stem cells is that the latter of the two come from newborns.
 

So how are adult stem cells collected?  Most people know that stem cells come from bone marrow but most companies who collect and preserve adult stem cells take them from adult peripheral blood.  This collection procedure is no different than taking blood for a blood test.  In the past, a process called aphaeresis procedure was used.  This process required the artificial stimulation of stem cell production by the donor’s bone marrow by employing injections of growth stimulating hormones several days prior to the collection. This method can be very costly and have some very unpleasant side effect for some donors.  

As with umbilical cord stem cells, the preservation of adult stem cells also has a cost running around $1600 or more, and in addition, there is an annual storage fee.   What the initial price generally does include is the enrollment fee, cord blood collection kit, specimen collection, express shipping, processing, testing and cryopreservation.  The storage of the cells will cost around $125 or more and as with the major cord blood banks there are payment plans available.  

By storing adult stem cells, everyone now has an opportunity to protect themselves and their loved ones.

Stem cells are precursor cells which mean they are primary cells that can differentiate to form mature or adult cells of different types. In humans, there are two types of stem cells:

• Embryonic stem cells- are found in an embryo and later differentiate into different forms of tissues as the embryo develops.
• Adult stem cells- are found in adult tissue which differentiate and help in replacing dead cells in the body.

The stem cells, because they have the capacity of forming new cells, are used in treating many diseases, some of which had no cure in earlier times. In today’s world, as many as 70 different diseases can be treated by the help of stem cells. Some of the diseases that can be treated with stem cells include many cancers, blood disorders, metabolic disorders, stem cell disorders, etc.

Sometimes the use of embryonic stem cells is widely opposed when it involves the destruction of the embryo. For these reasons, adult stem cells are the ones that are utilized in treating various conditions. Adult stem cells can be obtained from bone marrow or from cord blood (the blood that is found in the umbilical cord just after the delivery of the child) and from the placenta. These stem cells can not only be used to treat conditions that arise in the child but can also be used to treat some conditions that occur in other siblings, parents, other relatives and in some cases even unrelated people.

Cord blood and the placenta contain stem cells that are similar to stem cells found in bone marrow. Obtaining the cord blood and placenta is a one time opportunity that can be collected only at the time of delivery of a child and can be processed and preserved by keeping them in liquid nitrogen.

Stem cell preservation has to be planned much prior to delivery of the child. There are many cell banks that have been established to undertake this process and store and preserve the cells such that they are viable and useful for therapy, if the need arises at a later point of time.

Once a cord blood bank has been chosen for stem cell preservation, all the formalities for collection at birth should be completed beforehand. Just before delivery, two test tubes of blood are drawn from the mother and sent for testing for any communicable diseases. At the time of delivery, the doctor extracts the cord blood (around 75-100ml) and the placenta and sends the cord blood to the cord blood bank in special collection bags designed for this purpose.

Once the cord blood and the placenta reach the cell bank, it is disinfected, processed and a cryopreservative is added. Some cord blood banks utilize a method of separating the red blood cells in the cord blood while some don’t.

Once these processes are complete, the stem cells are tested for their viability by performing tests. The stem cell preservation is then begun by slow cooling first to around -90 degrees and then placed in liquid nitrogen where the temperature is maintained at -190 degrees Celsius. The viability of the cells will be lost if they are cooled too rapidly.

This is the method in which stem cell preservation is conducted, and preserved stem cells can be later taken if needed for therapy at any point in time. This process even though costly at this time is insurance that can store stem cells to fall back on if the need for future therapy arises.

Stem Cells are referred to as progenitor cells meaning that they form the origin for different forms of adult cells. A broad classification of stem cells can be made into two types:

• Embryonic stem cells are found in a budding embryo and help in forming tissues as they differentiate.
• Adult stem cells are mainly repair cells that help in repair and regeneration of lost cells.

The capacity of stem cells to differentiate into adult cells have been utilized in modern day medicine to control and cure diseases, many of which were thought incurable a few years ago. Stem cells have helped in generating a cure for an astonishing 70 diseases and the list is growing every day.

There is controversy and opposition from several quarters to the use of embryonic stems cells, both for therapy as well as for scientific purposes. This is because to isolate the embryonic stem cells, the embryo may have to be destroyed. For this reason, adult stem cells are preferred for use. These are harvested either through the bone marrow or from blood drawn through the umbilical cord during child birth. The placenta is another source for the stem cells.

These days due to the advent of newer methods of therapy using stem cells, there are many stem cell banks that have emerged all over the world which deal in stem cell preservation. There are many public and private cord blood banks available. Public cord blood banks do not preserve the stem cells for the particular person from whom they are being derived but hold it for public use, as in organ banks. A private cord blood bank performs stem cell preservation for the use of the family undertaking this service, for a particular fee.

The cord blood and the placenta that is available during the delivery of a child contains viable stem cells if the collected blood is of an adequate quantity (about 75ml at least). This collection is performed by the medical team involved in the child delivery and sent by prior arrangement in a specialized bag to the cord blood bank for processing and stem cell preservation.

Once the bags containing the blood and the placenta reach the cord blood bank, they undergo various processes for disinfection, processing to obtain the stem cells, and addition of a cryopreservative to help the stem cells remain viable. The processing of the cord blood is done either by a separation of red blood cells or by keeping them intact with the specimen.

The blood derived from the mother before delivery and the cord blood are both tested for the presence of communicable diseases. After the preservative is added, the process of stem cell preservation is begun by a slow cooling process which is necessary to maintain the stem cells intact. This slow cooling is performed by maintaining the temperature first at -90 degrees and then slowly to -190 degrees by placing the stem cells in liquid nitrogen.

The stem cell preservation in liquid nitrogen helps cells remain useful for therapy in the future. This process of stem cell preservation not only helps the individual to fight some disorder if it arises, but it also helps other members in the family too if they need the stem cells for therapy.

Currently there are 70 diseases that are treatable with stem cells. A generation ago or a decade ago, these diseases presented a poor prognosis for those diagnosed with them. Today, there is hope in stem cell preservation and stem cell research, but stem cell research is a controversial topic and an end to the debate is nowhere in sight. So what exactly is at debate? Why are emotions so torn when stem cell preservation could save lives?

There are two types of stem cells: adult and embryonic. Adult stem cells can be found in the bone marrow of the adult. Harvesting and preserving adult stem cells are not controversial. Instead, people embrace this research and look to it with hope. Embryonic stem cells, on the other hand, present a host of ethical concerns and issues sometimes disturbing the public.

Why? While it’s true that stem cells can be harvested from the umbilical cord, these stem cells are adult stem cells. In order to harvest embryonic stem cells, an in vitro procedure is performed which ultimately destroys the embryo and all chances for its survival. This lethal procedure is what is at the heart of the stem cell preservation debate. So why don’t scientists concentrate on harvesting adult stem cells and leave the embryonic ones alone?

Adult Stem Cells vs. Embryonic Stem Cells
Not all stem cells are created equal. There are actually three classifications of stem cells each with its own healing powers. For the purpose of this article, we are going to focus on two such classifications.

Embryonic stem cells are the most commonly used stem cells. Why? They are totipotent meaning that they are able to reproduce every type of cell found in the body. They are even capable of forming and entire organism. These cells are the miraculous life savers that offer the most hope to patients dying of certain diseases. Embryonic stem cells also inhibit the body’s immune response which means that there is less chance of rejection after a transplant.

Adult stem cells are multipotent which means that they are able to reproduce only a limited number of cell types. This means that their use in finding certain cures is limited. They are also difficult to harvest and pose many concerns including rejection.

There is no doubt that embryonic stem cell preservation can save lives, but is it at the cost of a human life. Granted, harvesting of stem cells occurs when the embryo is still a collection of cells.  But then the debate rages. When does life begin?