Whats So Special About Umbilical Cord Blood?
By: Maeve Rich Parents-to-be are bombarded with advertisements regarding umbilical cord blood banking, ads that appeal to the emotional side of umbilical cord blood banking but lack basic information. Just what is umbilical cord blood and what can it be used for? Umbilical cord blood is the blood that is left in the umbilical cord and placenta after a baby has been born and the umbilical cord has been cut. Umbilical cord blood is a great source of stem cells, which are unspecialized cells that produce blood cells. Stem cells can become platelets (used for blood clotting), red blood cells (which transport oxygen to the cells) and white blood cells (which fight disease). Doctors use the stem cells from umbilical cord blood to treat hematologic, immunologic and oncologic disorders. While these cells may also be found in bone marrow and circulating blood, cord blood is easier to match to transplant patients than the other two sources. Cord blood may be used by the person who donated the bl
