Cord Blood Stem Cells Information

When ones own bone marrow can help cure spinal cord injury, why save umbilical cord blood?

The recent report by the Chennai (India) based Japanese group NCRM (http://www.ncrm.org/media/pm12jun07.htm) that one own bone marrow stem cells can cure spinal cord injury, why do we save Umbilical cord blood cells for? I can unserstand that it is useful for Leukemias but whats the probability of one becoming a victim to the disease against the cost efefctiveness based on the outcome? Sometimes it leads me to think there is too much claim for usage of UCB from the industry where you shelve off 3000 USD but silently in India they are offering ones own bone marrow stem cell treatment for spinal cord injury...could any one clarify this controversy?

Public Comments

1. to be used in some future studies, i guess
2. useful leukemia, mutliple myeloma, lymphoma, and potentially any other cancer, neuromuscular disease, dementias, diabetes, etc.....
3. the cells found in the cord blood are blank cells and can be used for just about anything you could image
4. I was the lucky recipient of a cord blood transplant so I guess I can provide some insight. With umbilical cord blood, it usually is thrown away after a baby is born..so why not donate it? Cord blood can be transfused into a patient and from there, it can engraft and BECOME bone marrow. Not all patients are eligible to get their own bone marrow cells again. And not all people are willing to donate something they're already using. In my case, my bone marrow had depleted to a point where I had almost none left.