Successful Cord Blood Transplants of 2015 – Transformation in Healthcare

Major healthcare transformations and preventive medicine developments were witnessed in 2015. Cord Blood Stem Cell Transplants have been increasingly researched and proactively brought to use for curing a large number of diseases which were initially not treatable.

Successful Cord Blood Transplants of 2015

The life of a seven-year-old Emirati boy, Zayed Al Hammadi, was saved by cord blood stem cells

Zayed was diagnosed with beta thalassaemia major, a severe form of an inherited blood disorder that requires regular transfusions and does not have a permanent cure. Cord blood stem cells were donated by his three-year-old brother Mohammad. His condition was deteriorating fast and the family was given their last chance of hope thanks to the storage of Mohammad’s umbilical cord blood which was preserved at his birth. At present, stem cell transplant is the only known cure for beta thalassaemia major. A detailed Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) typing that is done to match a potential donor and recipient, showed the siblings were compatible. Zayed underwent a cord blood stem cell transplant. Since the transplant, he has returned back home, made a full recovery and no longer manifests any signs of disease. Kenneth R. Cooke, managing director, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, who carried out the surgery, said: “Stem cell storage really can change lives and to see such a positive outcome with Zayed’s case shows just what is possible. I would always recommend families to store their child’s cord blood whether they know of any possible health issues or not, as it can be used in the future for their benefit and that of other family members”.

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Stannington toddler suffering from massive brain tumor undergoes a successful cord blood stem cell transplant

Little Joseph Fawcett battled back from a massive brain tumor which almost claimed his life. Courage knows no bounds for the three-year-old who has undergone 11 bouts of intensive chemotherapy and a cord blood stem cell transplant in order to fight back to health. His parents are today looking forward to a family Christmas, knowing they have come a long way from that heartbreaking day their son was diagnosed. Luckily, against the odds, Joseph’s treatment started working and he no longer has any signs of the tumor. Now the lively three-year-old is looking forward to Christmas at home with his parents and younger brother, William.

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Shanghai Baby Girl Returns Home after Successful Stem Cell Treatment

Zhao Jiaxin is back in her parents’ arms yesterday after being released from the hospital in Shanghai. The baby earlier underwent cord blood stem cell therapy at Fudan University’s Children’s Hospital to treat a bowel disease. The stem cells were extracted from umbilical cord blood provided by a donor.

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The dearth of available treatment options and proven results of cord blood stem cell transplants, make the need for Cord Blood Stem Cell Banking evident. Babycell is one of the best and largest service providers of cord blood stem cell banking. Along with stem cell preservation, Babycell also provides value added services like antenatal care newborn screening (NBS), CFU assay- to test the ability of stem cells to differentiate, HLA testing and more.

 

5 Questions to Ask Before Choosing the Best Stem Cell Bank

While you are pregnant, one of the most important tasks for you and your family is to plan and safeguard your baby’s future! This requires a lot of groundwork and planning for the baby-on-the-way. Health conscious and aware parents are considering cord blood stem cell preservation to be an integral part of their baby plan.

What is Umbilical Cord?

The term “cord blood” is used to describe the blood that remains in the umbilical cord and the placenta after the birth of a baby. Up until recently this afterbirth umbilical cord was discarded as medical waste. Cord blood contains stem cells that may be cryopreserved for later use in medical therapies, such as stem cell transplants or clinical trials of new stem cell therapies.

What are cord blood stem cells?

The blood in the umbilical cord and placenta is rich in stem cells. The stem cells in cord blood can grow into the blood and immune system cells, as well as other types of cells.

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One of the most important decisions to be taken is – Which is the best umbilical cord blood bank for my baby?

Here are a few questions that you must ask the cord blood bank and choose the best cord blood bank for your baby.

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Let’s take it step by step based on the following parameters –

  1. Are there any specific accreditations I should look for when selecting a cord blood bank?

To decide on a cord blood bank, you’ll want to look at a number of factors which will define cell processing and lab practices: Cord blood banks should comply with national accreditation standards developed by national regulatory bodies such as ISO, FDA, GMP, GCP and GLP.  Cord blood banks who have attained these gold standards have a systematic, hygienic, temperature controlled and regulated lab for extraction and preservation.

  1. When and how is cord blood collected?

Umbilical cord blood is harvested quickly and painlessly just a few minutes after the birth of the baby— after the cord has been clamped, on both sides, and cut (either before or after the delivery of the placenta). The blood is collected either by drawing the blood from the umbilical cord with a needle and a “gravity bag” to drain and collect the blood.

  1.  What questions should parents ask about Collection?

It is necessary to know if the cord blood bank takes care of the collection of cord blood at the time of birth and the cost of shipping the cord blood to the preservation facility is included in the contract/agreement. It is also important to ask about paramedic or collection experts’ availability on weekends and wee hours.

  1. How does the cord blood bank manage shipping at the time of preservation and retrieval?

Most cord blood banks assure free global shipment at the time of retrieval, but it also important to understand the shipping criteria during transportation of the specimen from birthing centre to the cryopreservation facility. You may also want to ask the cord blood bank to guarantee to transport the specimen to the lab and processed within a certain time window. It is mandatory that the cryo-shipping container has a temperature logger.

  1. Is CFU really important, should we as parents care about it?

The answer is simple, it’s a big Yes. At present Colony Forming Units or CFU are considered to be the only and the best measure of whether stem cells are “viable”, or quite frankly if the cells are alive.  The Total Nucleated Cell count includes both living and dead cells.  In the CFU test, a small portion is watched under controlled conditions to see if cord blood stem cells divide and form colonies.  It is a standardized technology to image the cells and count colonies in the image.  It is advised by experts to take the CFU test before preservation as the test takes a lot of days for colonies to grow rather than wasting time at that time of retrieval or transplant to perform the test.

We hope this helps you to ask the right questions and thereby make your decisions about preserving your baby’s stem cells with the right bank!

For more information you may check: parentsguidecordblood.org/ and http://www.babycell.in/

Babycell has a panel of cord blood banking and stem cell transplants experts. To address your queries on stem cell banking you may call 1800 209 0309

A Ray Of Hope For Alzheimer’s Disease

November is Alzheimer’s Awareness month and to acknowledge this month, we want to spread awareness on how Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells might have a potential cure for this disease.

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia. The first signs of Alzheimer’s often include lapses in memory or struggling to find the right words. Over time, symptoms such as confusion, mood swings or memory loss develop and become increasingly severe.
Scientists have been actively engaged in research on stem cell transplants for Alzheimer’s disease patients and studies have shown some benefits. It was discovered that low doses of umbilical stem cells infused into a sample brain reduced the inflammation caused due to the plaque.

This brings us to the cessation that human umbilical cord MSCs (Mesenchymal stem cells) can bring a relief to an Alzheimer’s patient with its therapeutic components.

Here’s an info-graph that will give you insights on the current state of the disease.

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Five things you can stop worrying about now that you’re pregnant!

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Hello to be mommies, Congratulations on your pregnancy! We understand that you are curious, excited, sad, frustrated and at times really tired. But we would want to throw some light on five things that you can stop worrying about since you are pregnant. We hope this gives your belly a good laugh!

Sanitary Napkins and Tampons

Yes you heard it right. Its 42 weeks of bliss without your periods. You can get rid of tampons and sanitary napkins. You don’t need them anymore. Enjoy this break from cramps, bleeding and back-aches

Trying to get pregnant

The struggle finally ends. You clearly don’t need to keep checking and monitoring pregnancy tests. Now that you are finally pregnant, go ahead and make the big announcement!!

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Looking Fat

Your tummy will keep growing each week. Enjoy more shopping as per your new sizes. You don’t need to worry about being fat or looking fat. Your husband, girlfriends and sisters cannot question your body weight anymore!!

Birth Control

You don’t need to worry about contraception anymore.

Mood Swings

You will be pampered by your hubby, friends and family members, so you can stop being conscious about your mood and hormonal changes. Enjoy the love and pampering. The best way to burst your pregnancy stress is to spend time with your loved ones.

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Style your comfort in pregnancy trimesters!

In pregnancy the only key factor that your dressing depends upon is comfort. Relying on that completely, often your style goes for a toss. Being pregnant doesn’t mean you can’t keep up with fashion trends. Pregnant women too can wear whatever they like, the only key is to modify and adapt it to your new body!

1st trimester: In the 1st trimester the major challenge you face is to keep your pregnancy under wraps. To overcome this challenge you can opt for clothes which are lose and flowy. This will help you cover up those extra kgs you gain in your first months. The best suggested attire would be a lose kurta, an A-line skirt with a lose top or a blouson top with a stretch band at the bottom.

2nd trimester: While you move on to your 2nd trimester you will realize your body is changing with the day. At this time the major challenge that you will face is spending on new clothes every time. But rather than blowing up your budget on buying new clothes every month invest in a few items that will grow with you. Try going for dresses that have details like ruching, tie-backs, buttons or gathering at the sides. They will let you adjust your clothing as your body grows and changes.

3rd trimester: The moment you enter your third trimester you feel huge and uncomfortable. Everything you wear right from zippers to waist bands will be torturous. In this phase try going for comfortable yet stylish ankle length maxi dresses. Maternity leggings along with tunics can also add quite a lot to your style and make you feel comfortable at the same time.

During all the three trimesters make sure you play with colours and don?t just stick to blacks and greys. Whatever you pick make sure it suits your body. If you think you are comfortable in extra lose clothes make sure you pair them with accessories; they are certain to take your look from drab to fab.