You may have seen recent news coverage this month generated by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) challenging the value of private cord blood banking as a result of a small survey conducted with transplant physicians.
What wasn’t covered in these stories is the crucial fact that the survey, which was published in this month’s issue of the journal, Pediatrics, is not new. It’s outdated. The data was collected in 2004 - five years ago! A lot has changed since then.
Most importantly, stem cell science itself has changed. This survey data fails to reflect the pace of breakthrough progress researchers have made evaluating the benefits of infusing newborn stem cells from umbilical cord blood for therapeutic uses far beyond cancers and blood disorders. By releasing the old survey data now, the AAP has fundamentally ignored the changes taking place in stem cell medicine - as well as the important role of private cord blood banks in the process.
The use of a child’s own (autologous) cord blood stem cells has emerged as an important research focus for regenerative medicine - the ability to repair or regrow specific tissue in the body, such as nerve tissue in the brain or insulin-generating cells in the pancreas. Because autologous cord blood stem cells are safe and won’t be rejected by the body - and because they have unique characteristics compared to other sources of stem cells - they are an increasing focus of regenerative medicine research.
Today, private banking remains the only way to ensure a family has access to autologous cord blood stem cells or those of a sibling. It’s also important to know that there is up to a 75 percent chance that a sibling’s cord blood stem cells can be a suitable match for traditional transplant therapies. In addition, a child’s own cord blood may be the preferred option even for certain types of cancers. Since this survey was fielded, numerous autologous stem cell transplants have been performed for specific cases of leukemia, lymphoma, myeloma and solid tumors.
Another important change since 2004 is the number and types of physician specialists who are using autologous stem cells - including newborn stem cells from cord blood - for medical therapies. This survey reflects only the perspectives from hematologists and oncologists who have used stem cells for the treatment of many blood diseases and cancers. However, the past five years have brought many other physician specialists and some of the most clinically challenging unmet medical needs to the forefront of stem cell medicine. Neurologists, endocrinologists and others are actively evaluating autologous cord blood to treat conditions such as brain injury, and type 1 diabetes, to name a few.
What a difference five years makes.
While concerning, it’s not surprising that the AAP published this survey. The academy’s current cord blood policy discourages family banking except in cases where a family member has a known medical condition that could potentially benefit from stem cell transplantation.
However, while family history and existing medical conditions are excellent reasons to bank cord blood, many diseases treatable by cord blood stem cells occur in the absence of any family history and without an affected family member. Anyone’s health situation can change at anytime - sometimes unexpectedly. This is another key reason we believe the current AAP policy on cord blood banking is flawed. Our perspective was first published more than a year ago in an issue of The Journal of Life Sciences.
Parents with children suffering from ailments such as brain injury, cerebral palsy, or diabetes AND who have stored their child’s cord blood in a family bank now have an option they didn’t have five years ago: they have the opportunity to participate in groundbreaking medical research that is showing encouraging potential to treat conditions that have no cure today.
The bottom line its this: as clinical research continues to advance - and as more expectant parents choose to bank their newborn’s cord blood stem cells - physicians will have the option of using these privately banked cord blood stem cells more often. It’s happening already. In the last four years, the number of autologous cord blood units released by CBR for medical use has increased 140 percent - a strong indication of the emerging acceptance and use of autologous cord blood stem cells in regenerative medicine.
A different survey fielded today would most likely offer a very different outcome.