I just read an interesting article on banking the stem cells from baby teeth. While I am a big believer in stem cells, I am somewhat skeptical of these companies that keep introducing new sources of stem cells and developing companies to bank these stem cells. Cord blood is currently used to treat 70 different diseases so it seems reasonable to consider saving it just in case (especially since it would otherwise be thrown in the trash). Baby teeth and menstrual blood (another source of stem cells) are currently not used to treat anything. So, not only are you banking in case your child (or yourself) becomes ill, but you are also counting on scientists developing a succcessful treatment in that time. As far as I know, there is currently no research exploring the treatment potential of baby teeth. Banking them at a cost of $590 plus $100 a year considering they have no use seems like a long shot to me. Although, I have all my daughter’s baby teeth in my jewelry box. Do you think they can be used for anything ?

If you are considering cord blood banking a great resource is The Parents Guide to Cord Blood. This is a non-profit site that was put together about ten years ago to provide unbiased information about cord blood banking. Many of the sites that claim to be unbiased are actually produced or sponsored by specific cord blood companies. Dr. Verter, who developed The Parents Guide to Cord Blood is familiar with all of the cord blood banks and provides information to parents who are confused about the cord blood field. When speaking with parents who sound confused or concerned, I will sometimes suggest they visit The Parents Guide to Cord Blood to help them get some guidance from an impartial observer.

Parents sometimes contact us wanting to donate their baby’s cord blood without understanding the difference between public and private cord blood banks.  Private cord blood banks are organizations that parents pay to store their cord blood.  The cord blood can only be accessed by the parents or child (after he/she turns 18) if they want to use it.

A public cord blood bank is an organization that accepts donated cord blood. If a parent chooses a public bank, he gives his baby’s cord blood to the bank. The cord blood might be used for treatment of someone who is sick or for research. One misconception is that parents believe they can store with a public bank and then access the cord blood once it is needed. This is unlikely. Public banks are very particular about what samples they will store.  If the cord blood is stored, it may be used for treatment or research and will likely be gone by the time parents would need it.

One of the biggest issues with public banks is that most of them do not accept donations from all hospitals. To work with a public bank, a hospital must have a relationship with the bank and often, will only allow cord blood donations at specific times of day.

Here at M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood Laboratories, we believe that every parent should have a choice to bank in a public bank or a private bank. The goal is to eventually have all cord blood collected and saved rather then ending up as medical waste after the delivery. What do you think?

M.A.Z.E Cord Blood Laboratories has posted its family newsletter M.A.Z.E. News Today on its Web site.  This newsletter was developed for families who have banked with M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood Laboratories and helps keep them posted on what is new at M.A.Z.E.  If you would like to subscribe to M.A.Z.E. News Today, simply send an email titled “subscribe” to newsletter@mazelabs.com.

Researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center are using natural killer cells from cord blood to kill human leukemia cells in rats.  Patrick Zweidler-McKay, MD, PhD has found a new method to expand the NK cells available in a cord blood unit while maintaining their leukemia treating effects.  One of the biggest areas of research today is the exploration of different methods of cell expansion with cord blood.  This will allow a patient to be treated with a single cord blood unit no matter how large.    If this treatment is proved successful in humans it will increase the types of leukemia patients that can be treated using cord blood.

A Georgia television station produced a news segment on a high school basketball player who was treated for scoliosis using stem cells.  The patient had nearly a 50 degree curvature of his spine.  He underwent surgery using his own stem cells, bone and permanent screws and rods to reduce his curvature to just 15 degrees.  Three months later, the patient is back to playing basketball and continues to recover. 

While not all cases of scoliosis require surgery, the prior treatment was more painful.  It involved removing a portion of the patient’s bone from the iliac crest and fusing it to the spine to prevent the curvature from deteriorating.  This involved another surgery site and could lead to permanent pain from the removal site.

This is another great way that stem cells are being used to help improve patients’ lives.