Cord stem cells: Advantages and disadvantages
Stem cells can be obtained from fetuses, embryos, bone marrow and cord blood.
However, of all stem cells, umbilical cord stem cells are considered as most effective. You can use cord blood stem cells to cure a disease or repair a damaged part of your body.
If you wish to ’save’ your child’s cord blood, it is recommended you discuss this issue with your spouse and select a cord blood service that suits you. Your child’s cord blood could help save another child’s life.
Here are some advantages and disadvantages of cord stem cells in detail:
Advantages:
1) Harvesting stem cells from the umbilical cord blood is not risky for the child or the mother. However, a donor of bone marrow can get an infection and must be anesthetized.
2) Harvesting of umbilical cord stem cells is a quick process. Umbilical blood is collected away in cryogenic freezers. However, the process of getting in contact with marrow donors and getting them tested is a process that usually takes weeks to complete. You will need substantial time to find a bone marrow donor but units for umbilical blood are ready to be used.
In addition, the umbilical blood unit can be taken to the transplant hospital in less than a week’s time. The doctor selects the cord blood to use and can make the transplant urgently.
3) Umbilical cord stem cells have a low incidence of graft vs. host disease, or GVHD (Graft-versus-host disease), as they are more archaic than the stem cells in the bone marrow. This is why a perfect match is not required between the patient and the donor. It is common to have GVHD after allogeneic transplants and it can be life threatening as well as mild. You have less chances of getting GVHD, if you have had a cord blood transplant.
4) It was earlier believed that one person could not be treated with stem cells obtained from two different umbilical cords. However, this outlook has changed after stem cells from two donors were successfully used in a stem cell transplant. This proves the adaptability of cord stem cells.
5) In cord blood transplant, a matching cord blood unit is not mandatory. The doctor may be able to conduct a transplant even if there is partial match between donors and recipients cord blood cells. The recipient in such transplants has less risk of complications, which is an added advantage.
Now that you know the advantages of cord blood stem cells, let us know about its disadvantages:
Disadvantages:
1) You can be at risk during the stem cell engraftment process as cord stem cells are older than the stem cells found in bone marrow. This engraftment process takes a long time and patient can get infection during this time.
2) Stem cells available in cord blood are not sufficient for treatment in adults. Stem cells in a typical umbilical cord blood are just enough to be transplanted in a small-sized adult or a small child.
Advances in medical sciences are bringing new advantages of cord stem cell therapies to light. Scientist are conducting extensive test to see if any advantages offered have any side effects on human body.
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