Leukemia is not present at the beginning of life, but is developed by mutation or change in normal genes later in life. Stem cells in cord blood represent cells before any changes have occurred in their genes. In case of other types of cancers (.g. solid tumors), stem cells are not involved and can be used for transplantation.

Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT) are procedures that restore stem cells that have been destroyed by high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy. There are three types of transplants: In allogeneic transplants, patients receive stem cells from someone other than the patient or an identical twin. The patient's brother, sister, or parent may serve as the donor, or a person not related to the patient (an unrelated donor) may be used.

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Stem Cells have the ability to cure many diseases. Recently, scientists have discovered some new possibilities for treating many diseases and injuries in the future.

In spinal cord injury and Parkinson’s disease, the body is unable to naturally heal the damaged axons and dopamine-producing neurons of the spinal cord and brain, respectively. In spinal cord injury, loss of muscle and sensory function is seen below the site of the injury. In Parkinson’s disease, involuntary movements and tremors result from the damaged neurons in the brain.

insurance coordinator at CTCA will approach your insurance company to help obtain approval for a future stem cell transplant.

Remember when they told you in medical school that half of what they were teaching you was wrong, they must didn't know which half. Now we do...

The single most important difference is the source of the stem cells that give rise to mature blood cells in our blood stream. Bone marrow transplantation uses marrow-derived stem cells that live in our bone cavity. Marrow stem cells used in transplantation are obtained from the donor by removing a portion of the liquid marrow from the hip bone using a needle. This procedure is done in an operating room and requires some form of local or general anesthesia.

The collection process takes place after delivery when the cord has been separated from your newborn infant. In no way does it interfere with the birth of your baby. Your attending physician, nurse or midwife collects the cord blood utilizing a sterile kit provided by Cord Partners. The collected cord blood is sealed in a specially designed package and delivered to our laboratory for testing and processing. Finally, the sample is cryogenically stored until it needs to be retrieved.

Stem cells, which are in your bone marrow and blood, allow new marrow to grow in a patient in need of transplantation. Patients whose marrow is diseased require new stem cells from a healthy donor to enable their own body to grow new marrow. Stem cells collected from a donor are infused into a patient's veins through an IV, just like a blood transfusion. Infusion of stem cells collected from a donor's bone marrow is referred to as a bone marrow transplant.

Umbilical cord blood was first used for transplantation in 1988, in France, for a patient with Fanconi's anemia; a disease-free sibling was the donor. Since that time, cord blood has been increasingly used as a substitute for bone marrow in thousands of successful transplants.

It is not necessary to contact Cryo-Cell directly after the birth of your baby, if you use AirNet's service. Simply provide AirNet with the mother's name, home telephone number, client ID and the baby's date and time of birth. AirNet will contact you directly upon delivery of your baby's cord blood specimen to Cryo-Cell. You can choose to be contacted by phone, email or pager.

In anticipation of amplification, Cord Partners stores your sample in dual chamber Med-Sep cryo-bags. These cryo-bags preserve your sample in a 5ml compartment and a 20ml compartment designed to accommodate expansion. This means the 5ml compartment can be accessed and expanded without disturbing the 20ml bag.

No, umbilical cord blood cells are taken from the baby's umbilical cord and placenta after the baby is born, and not from an embryo.

Ans.: Yes, but seen in comparison to the benefits, the cost incurred is insignificant. Cord blood Stem Cell preservation simply adds an element of protection against some of the most devastating possibilities that could occur in the future.

The type of stem cell most often discussed in the news is an embryonic stem cell. During fertilization, a sperm cell unites with an egg cell, and begins to reproduce by dividing into different cells. These cells begin to arrange themselves into an outer ring of cells that enclose an inner cell mass called a blastocyst. Researchers have collected these inner cells and discovered that they can be made to develop into many types of specialized cells in the body.

Stem cells are the way of the future in medical technology. Ethical research is underway throughout the medical community and scientific discoveries are being made every day that are bringing us closer to being able to treat and cure many diseases once thought to be incurable or terminal.

Ans.: Until the child is of legal age, the parents, as the child's guardians, have control over the Stem Cells. No Stem Cells will be released by our associates Lab without the parents consent initially and later the child's consent once they reach legal age.

In 1988, the first cord blood transplantation was performed in Paris, France on a five year old boy with Fanconi’s Syndrome, or Fanconi’s Anemia, using his sister’s UCB stem cells. To date he remains disease free and very healthy! In 1989, the first cord blood stem cell transplant occurred in the United States, at the University of Cincinnati. In 1991 a transplant was performed on a child with chronic myelogenous leukemia.

The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) is committed to building a strong network and inventory of high-quality cord blood units available to any patient who needs a transplant. We work with expectant parents and public cord blood banks to increase the number and diversity of cord blood units available for patients. We are also committed to improving transplant results for patients. That is why we are conducting a research study on cord blood transplantation and patient outcomes.

The most common cause of heart disease is a decrease in blood flow to the heart. Sudden reduction (heart attack) or gradual reduction in blood flow to the heart ultimately leads to chest pains during physical activity (angina pectoris). In some people, the reduction in blood supply is so significant that some of the heart tissue dies and stops functioning. If the damaged area is large enough, the heart cannot pump blood efficiently and heart failure ensues.

Pending FDA approval, the answer is YES! Stem cell expansion (also called amplification), will be available to anyone who has banked their child's stem cells. To put this in perspective, could you imagine a world in which penicillin was only made available to a fraction of the population who needed it for medical treatment? Neither can we. Companies are researching expansion to increase treatment options for doctor's and patients everywhere.

A stem cell is an uncommitted cell that has the potential to develop into cells of a specific tissue (such as the hematopoietic stem cell developing into all of the blood cells). Within the fetus and the adult, stem cells are found in various areas of the body. Embryonic stem cells are the precursors to all stem cells as well as all other tissues of the body.

Sufficient years have not passed to prove the absolute length of time; however, it is believed that stem cells can be successfully stored long term, perhaps decades, in a cryopreserved form. A recent study of cord blood at Indiana University demonstrated its viability after 15 years of cryogenic storage. Bone marrow has been stored for decades and has remained viable; there is no reason to believe that the same would not be true of cord blood.

Cord blood stem cells have a number of significant advantages over other sources of stem cells (i.e., bone marrow): results in a lower rate of severe graft-vs-host disease (a major complication in stem cell transplants), and In addition, cord blood is "privileged" or unexposed to most diseases, which can make bone marrow from an adult more difficult to use in transplantation.

The preserved cord blood stem cells are, of course, available as a perfect match for the child from whose umbilical cord they were collected. Because there is a 1-in-4 chance of a perfect match with a sibling, parents may choose to make the cord blood available to siblings or potentially other family members who may need them. That decision is theirs alone.

Cord blood stem cells are the building blocks of the blood and immune systems. They are the origin of white blood cells that fight infection, red blood cells that carry oxygen and platelets that promote clotting and healing.

It is the blood obtained from the umbilical cord at birth. The cord blood contains stem cells. Stem cells are the cells that make all of the other cells in your body, i.e., heart cells, neural cells, etc. These stem cells continue to reproduce throughout life unless they are destroyed by cancer or blood disease. If your stem cells are destroyed, you will die unless they are replaced by transplant.