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Treatment is based on the fact that adult stem cells are uniquely undifferentiated - they naturally exist in a "neutral state" and can become almost any cell type in your body. They are distributed throughout the body and are responsible for maintaining and repairing the tissue in which they reside through a natural, lifelong process of replication and differentiation.
Companies have been storing stem cells from umbilical cord blood since 1992 in the U.S. Today over 10% of newborns have their cord blood stored by parents who understand its unique value. The cord blood banking industry is projected to grow to $1.2 billion by 2010 due to the abundance of pending new stem cell treatment options which are currently in clinical trials.
The adult stem cell storage market is growing for the same reasons. An increasingly informed public understands that storing healthy, young cells is a form of insurance and assurance for the entire family. They are looking beyond the current treatments for disease and looking forward to extending vitality as they age.
Microscopic image of Bone |
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The urgent need to bank your own stem cells is based on the lack of a public source of healthy, safe cells. Although there are sources for and ways to use allogeneic stem cells – cells from others – the match cannot be perfect. The results are sub-optimal and the risk of rejection is ever present. Today, public cell banks can fulfill less than 5% of the therapeutic demand if we all were to receive at least one treatment in our lives. The only way to assure you have a source of viable, matching cells is to bank your own healthy stem cells (autologous) – the younger the better.
Because families often have matching cells, they are typically able to share adult and newborn stem cells. |
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