We're being SPAMMED by StemTech

I'm not sure how we've managed to make it onto StemTech's spambot list of blogsites, but we've just been patiently deleting them as they come in.

Today, I changed my mind and instead of just going ahead to hit delete, I've decided to dedicate an entire post entry to them due to the fact that they have been actively making their rounds in Malaysia.

One bottle of algae based supplements sells for RM 200+ per bottle (I'm told by those who have bought it) and is supposed to raise your own body's endogenous stem cells by an amount significant enough to increase one's sense of well-being.

My colleague Prof. Aw - who by the way is a recent convert to supplementation- was contacted by one of the StemTech agents/ distributors before. He asked them to send him journal papers (which they claimed they had) and on a second encounter, asked them to do a proof of concept trial by checking on the amount of stem cells raised after taking the supplements for a month.

NO REPLY was forthcoming.

I was even more surprised when I discovered that the french neurologist scientist who is the founder of the organization was invited to present at one of the major hospital's inaugural lecture series here. Due to the heavy downpour, none of us were able to attend but we were most curious as to whether they had received some sort of approval from our government, or whether the major hospital chain was endorsing their product.

I've asked some of the people who are taking this supplement to subject themselves to a simple trial which we'll conduct to see if what they've claimed is true. If I'm able to convince them, I'll be sharing the results with you.

If you're from StemTech and you're reading this, you might like to sponsor the trial if the confidence you have in your product is high.

If not, please stop misleading the public and don't use the term stem cells - call it what it probably is- a vitamin supplement.

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Stem Cell Enhancers: The NEW Science

Standing singly, away from all the controversy, some of the scientific community is giving rise to the world's very first patented, organic stem cell enhancer. With only a single dose of this modern day amazement your body can begin the renewal process. In fact, within just one hour after taking this wonder supplement,three to 4 million, yes MILLION stem cells are added to your bloodstream and go to work.

StemEnhance is a revolutionary breakthrough, all natural product that supports adult stem cell physiology. It's the first patented product on the market in the latest phytoceutical category called "Stem Cell Enhancers".http://www.phyl247.com or http://www.phyl247.biz phyl247 970-985-4076
As we age, the number and quality of stem cells that circulate in our body gradually decrease, leaving our body more susceptible to injury and other age-related health challenges. StemTech Health Science's Stem Enhance is the alternative to the controversial stem cells we hear about in the news. Patented Product StemEnhance supports the natural release of stem cells to promote optimal healing and stem cell physiology.

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Note to StemTech: Please stop spamming us.

Menstrual Stem Cell Banking by LifeCell India

Note to Indian Women: If you're having your period this week, you're probably an immediate target for LifeCell India.

One of the latest news articles to come out of Chennai this week is LifeCell India's announcement that they will be offering menstrual blood cell banking at their facility, adding to the cord blood business.

Personally, I think that most asian women would find this quite disgusting (and disturbing!) given that there are far more hygenic sources. What do you think?

The new service which commences on the 8th of March (Sunday) and apparently designated "Women's day" will be the launch, though I wonder how exactly one would launch a service like this.

LifeCell India signed on to license the technology from Cryo-cell which sent letters to all cord blood stem cell banks around the world (or at least they were courteous to send one my way) inviting any interested parties to license the technology which they were probably going to charge six to seven figures for.

Ironically, with the difficulties of obtaining parents to bank cord blood stem cells, LifeCell India seems unperturbed by the fact that menstrual cells are not even a proven source of stem cells and that culturally, there would be no objections.

"The limited availability of bone marrow led to the discovery of cord blood stem cells. Now it is proved that the success rate of menstrual blood stem cells is about 100 times higher than the 0.2 to 0.3% of stem cells derived from human bone marrow," said Mayur Abhaya, executive director, Lifecell International.

I'm a little skeptical about these statements, though to be fair I haven't read any scientific literature describing menstrual blood contents. But why would the body waste precious stem cells in menstrual blood? One can understand baby's cord blood, as that is blood that circulates through the placenta and the baby's developing blood system, but cells that are meant to be shed are probably already hormonally directed down a self-destruct pathway.

"These stem cells are unique because they multiply rapidly and can differentiate into many other types of cells such as neural, cardiac, bone, fat, cartilage etc," said Dr Ajit Kumar, chief scientific officer, LifeCell International. They can be used to treat everything from heart disease to diabetes to neurological disorders.

Assuming that stem cells can truly treat everything, they would still have to prove that menstrual stem cells can be manipulated to the same extent.

LifeCell will introduce special collection kits for women who wish to bank their stem cells. The kit has a silicon cup that can collect up to 30 ml of menstrual blood. "It is like a sanitary napkin or tampon, and can last up to eight hours," explained Abhaya.

Kind of messy isn't it?

If you'd like to know what questions to ask and what kind of assurances you're getting for your money, you might want to check out this posting that we reviewed a while ago.

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Stem Cell Snake Oil? When a rotten apple spoils the whole barrel

There's no need to tell me that this blog site seems to be gathering a rather thick layer of dust since we last posted in April. It certainly isn't for the lack of interest but simply the lack of time and sleep!

Well, there's been lots happening in the stem cell world and if you've been keeping up with the news (and if you've been doing that, you definitely have had more time than I have) you'll have seen the many various promotions by new companies, the new technological adoptions and the wide-scale criticism of certain organizations who offer purported stem cell treatments without credible medical data or volunteer themselves for western methods of accreditation and inspection.

There has been most unfortunate reports the media, highlighting the cases of families being "conned" into stem cell treatments and spending hard-earned or hard-raised cash flying to exotic countries for injections. The media certainly portray these families as having no money and no idea as to what they are getting into and are therefore considered "victims" of scams.

It does seem to me that some of these criticisms of the various centers, while valid, give too much credit and sympathy to the patient. Patients who are willing to spend that amount of money should certainly conduct their own research first and opt to try something experimental, knowing that the outcome at best may be to return home safely after a vacation from their usual drudgery and hopefully no worse than what conventional drugs or palliative treatment can offer.

Some of these centers have claims of miraculous cures and patients who have shown remarkable improvements in their conditions. What I'm wondering is whether these centers have been invited to the table to present their work and explain why they think a particular treatment worked in some patients and not in others.

The stem cell world is still new and many issues surrounding the understanding of how stem cells migrate and assist in tissue regeneration have yet to be elucidated.

In any case, the jury is still out and therefore it all depends on whether you believe in "innocent until proven guilty" or "guilty until proven innocent". Criticism is always easier when you haven't got a sick child or a parent with an incurable disease. Desperation itself is a powerful motivating factor to try anything or to try nothing, and is the individual's or family's decision.

One of the biggest problems that a patient faces is access to information and doctors who are really willing to discuss the issues knowledgeably and openly. Doctors could also inform the patients that there are no guarantees in any medical treatment and in the cases of the currently "incurable", inform the parents of the basis of the disease and why stem cells may or may not be able to help.

A short list of questions that might be useful for potential patient to ask are:

1) Are these treatments performed in licensed hospitals?
2) Who are the doctors performing the treatments?
3) How are the stem cells applied?
4) What is the source of the stem cells?
5) Can I see your laboratory facility? (sterility controls, infectious disease etc)
6) Can my medical doctor speak with your medical director?
7) What is the track record of your patients? (success vs. failures, how many still alive?)
8) What other therapies/ treatments do I have to undergo?
9) Adequate back-up facilities for complications?

There are no right or wrong answers but its good to understand the main motives of the providing organization to know whether it is purely for profit and the injections may only be saline.

Blogging Live from Singapore at the UK-Singapore Stem Cell Symposium

Its been a long time since I sat in a room full of developmental biologists discussing the intricate biochemical pathways -some discovered and debated heatedly- and listened to the fundamental scientific research performed in the UK.

Organized by A*STAR’s Singapore Stem Cell Consortium and the British High Commission at Singapore’s Biopolis, it was another event which made evident Singapore’s financial commitment to establishing a scientific research base through educating its PhD students and motivating local researchers to aspire to international knowledge standards. Since I did spend a few years in a research position in Singapore, it is only right that I promote their efforts in scientific education.

15 scientists (of which 7 were Professors and researchers from their respective departments) from the Universities of Cardiff, Cambridge, UCL, Sheffield and Edinburgh presented a thirty-five minute summary of their work involving stem cell pathways derived from embryonic cell lines and cancer cells.

All the presentations were very technical (as they should be) and involved the investigation of signaling pathways in the cell.

For those who are less scientifically inclined, signaling pathway research, in plain language is finding out how a cell talks to another cell, and how each of the cells respond in body language according to what is said. Imagine that a cell is itself made up of many components (kind of like organs within your body) and these components need to synchronize in order to regulate and make the cell what it is, or what it is to become. In this case, the researchers were trying to find out which factors affect the embryonic stem cells and make them change or “differentiate” into a specialized cell type.

As always in basic scientific research, as long as governments don’t run dry on funding, scientists will always have work to do because we are still a long way off understanding how our cells talk to each other, and most importantly how to control unnecessary conversations which may spark off a chain of unwanted reactions.

You can find the list of speakers and topics here, and for the sake of brevity and also without having to go into too much basic cell biology, I’m going to give you an outline of a few of the talks which I find easier to explain and are relevant to the faithful readers of this blog. I've chosen 4 presentations (Prof. Tariq Enver, Dr. Phil Jones, Dr. James Hui and Prof. Pete Coffey) to share with you and you'll find them in the ensuing entries.

Concerns over Indian Cord Blood Bank Life Cell

I saw this blog entry which was pretty interesting. Essentially, the author describes the controversies of running a cord blood bank, even a "public-access" one, which create perceptions of charity or public responsibility, but may have its own consequences of ethics and points of controversy*.

I'll provide you with the start of the article and maybe you'll find it interesting enough to read the whole entry (which isn't long) and think through its perspectives... The first 3 lines were very provoking.


Cord blood banks are a lot like real ones. The more people participate, the better the value for everyone.

It's free to make a deposit, but withdrawals come with all kinds of fees.

US banks are pretty well regulated. The rest of the world has its colorful outliers.
People fear that India, which is coming into the cord banking world now with LifeCell, may not be too stringent on who gets to buy their blood -- and people may be dying to donate. Wired has the story:

Most experts agree that public cord-blood banking is a good idea. Stem cells from both cord blood and bone marrow treat many blood diseases, but cord blood is easier to obtain. Cord blood is also less likely to be rejected than bone marrow, which requires an exact match, usually from a family member. Similar to a blood bank, a cord-blood bank relies on donations to cover a broad range of immune types. The more donors, the more likely patients in need will find a match.
But in India, where female infanticide and body-organ sales are not uncommon, watchdog groups worry that a massive cord-blood bank like LifeCell's could create a dangerous demand for umbilical cords.



I believe that if good quality stem cell banking can be made available for a reasonable price, expectant parents would have no qualms about making the decision to store their babies's stem cells. Whilst greater popularity amongst investors should be a good thing, one of the challenges facing cord blood banks in many countries today is posed by ruthless competition, where price slashing may lead to a consequential cutting corners in a service which confuses the public and gives the entire industry a bad name.

At StemLife, we believe in providing value added services to our clients at an affordable cost and going the extra mile to make sure that the stem cell banking service is available to anyone who enquires. Our committment to our clients is that we care about their babies' stem cells and prudent management of the company with proven credibility also enables us to survive and excel in this new but exciting industry.



*Private banks are often accused of making parents feel bad for not banking their babies' cord blood stem cells, but forget that public banks are faced with difficult choices too in order to meet their respective targets.

Do not misinterpret NHS Trust Doctor's stance on Cord Blood Collection

A quick search on cord blood reveals a number of articles citing a senior consultant obstetrician, Dr. Leroy Edozien, commenting on cord blood collection. I felt that the headlines proclaiming that he was totally against cord blood collection is unfairly represented by the press, as his actual comments relate mostly to the cord blood collected in public hospitals and its logistic issues poses to the doctors.

My analysis of the comments that I could find are as follows:


His concern: "Time spent on collecting cord blood is time away from the care of this mother, the baby, and, critically, other patients."

This may be true in government facilities as staff numbers are sometimes limited and due to the overwhelming load of patient deliveries, doctors and nurses often have to manage multiple ladies in various stages of labor. However, the time spent also does depend on the method of cord blood collection. Some companies provide syringes (cheaper) and expect the doctor to load the anti-coagulant prior to collection. However, StemLife makes this as easy as possible for one doctor/ nurse to perform the collection with sterile, pre-loaded blood bags with anti-coagulant which saves time and manipulation.


He adds: ""As well as being given a realistic assessment of the value of cord blood banking, parents need to know how their care, and the care of other women, can be affected by cord blood collection and what could go wrong during collection. There could also be risks that the cord blood could be contaminated or mislabeled, which could lead to legal action."

True, except that all cord blood stem cell banks should have already signed agreements with parents and counselled them sufficiently to understand that the collection of cord blood is never guaranteed. Some mothers may have emergency deliveries where it may be deemed that cord blood cannot be safely collected. Dr. Edozien's specialty is managing mothers with pregnancy problems and if these ladies requested cord blood collections, this may have bearings on the delivery process.

And not only do cord blood volumes vary from baby to baby (think small, large, long, short umbilical cords) but also despite thorough cleaning of the cord by the doctor, a single bacteria which may remain on the cord may enter the blood bag and contaminate the unit. This is not the doctor's fault nor the cord blood banks' as bacteria exist naturally everywhere, in the mucosa, vaginal tract and also in the digestive tract. All it would take would be a small amount of urine, poo or fart* to get the bacteria onto the cord and perhaps into the blood.

Cord blood banks do not usually accept contaminated units in accordance with good banking practices (StemLife does not, although I understand that there are some in asia who do...) and will discard them after informing the parents of the result. In this event, StemLife provides a full refund to the client and this happens in a small number of collections each month. I suppose if there was no refund involved, then not only would the client have lost the opportunity to bank the stem cell unit but also some money (the sum which is involved in the processing and testing of the unit).

Dr. Edozien also poses the concern of mislabelling but StemLife addresses this issue in 2 ways: 1) pre-labelling the cord blood kit with the mother's name prior to the birth of the baby and 2) ensuring that our collection team member checks on the name of the mother against our delivering database. I'm curious as to how the UK cord blood banks manage this point.


He says: "Even if the rapid pace of technological advancement results in today's speculation becoming tomorrow's reality, risk management, medicolegal, ethical, and public policy considerations militate against commercial collection of cord blood in NHS maternity units. It should therefore be NHS policy not to facilitate umbilical cord blood collection by its staff."

-If I had a child with thalassemia major and my next baby's cord blood could help treat the condition, would you prevent me from collecting the cord blood?
Can you guarantee a matching unit for my child in the public cord blood bank?-
....Its pretty tragic if no exceptions can be made in the NHS hospitals as there may be mothers who really require the service although they may not necessarily know it at the birth of their child. Private cord blood stem cell banks have already facilitated transplants for these patients and the numbers continue to grow.


He admits:"Increasing numbers of women in maternity units across the United Kingdom are requesting collection of umbilical cord blood at delivery to enable storage of stem cells for possible autologous transfusion in the future."

There is no denying that many mothers will come to know about cord blood stem cells. UK Mothers who wish to have cord blood stem cells collected may need to go to private centers. That would be a pity as it would be a step back from making another simple procedure routinely available for all mothers. I'm no expert on the NHS policies and I'm sure the doctors are doing the best they can under the circumstances available, but perhaps they could consider having those mothers who wish to have their cord blood collected check in to specific rooms and pay a small procedural fee to have a doctor, nurse or trained cord blood bank staff perform the collection. This may also provide some financial alleviation on the healthcare budget of the hospital.



*please excuse my use of this colloquialism

THE USE (AND ABUSE) OF STEM CELLS IN THE PURSUIT OF BEAUTY

Almost every time that I present publicly about what stem cells are and the services that StemLife provides, it is inevitable that someone in the audience will ask: "Can stem cells be used for anti-aging?". My honest reply is that StemLife is not currently working in this area which is dominated by botox, plastic surgery and implants. The next question often is more like a statement... "But other countries are offering stem cell therapy for anti-aging, aren't they?"

I'm no expert in this area of medical/surgical-enhancement but have heard rumours about many well-to-do individuals spending upwards of USD 70,000 on animal-derived stem cell therapy at special clinics in Switzerland which lasts for a year before they have to return for a 'top up'. Generally speaking, I don't have anything against people wanting to look young (aesthetics and proper grooming does play an important factor in finding mates, jobs etc.) and if stem cells can play a significant role in this area then it should be explored.

On the other end of the spectrum, I came across this article which reported that impoverished women were being paid USD 200 to abort the 8-12 week fetus and "donate" the fetus for stem cell extraction, which are then sold to exclusive cosmetic clinics. I find this practice disturbing - not only because abortion is morally complex and may be considered inhumane (let's not forget the health of the mother)- but also the concern of what diseases may be transmitted in the process.


My questions would be:

1) The source of the stem cells- is the source free of all infectious diseases and other transmissible conditions?
2) How are the cells collected and how are they processed?
3) Are there any additives and reagents used in the harvest or processing?
4) Does the final product contain cells or cellular extracts?
5) By which route is the product administered?
6) Possible allergic reactions or tumour formation?


THE POTENTIAL DOLLAR VALUE OF AN EMBRYO

The price set for obtaining fetal cells makes me wonder about whether embryonic stem cells obtained from discarded embryos have any assigned value. Some thoughts for those considering an IVF procedure- it might be good to check first on the facility's policies on what happens to the discarded embryos- if they are discarded or put through to commercial use or research.

HOW TO PREVENT THOSE EMBRYOS GETTING INTO THE WRONG HANDS

One thing that those going to IVF clinics could query is what happens to their discarded embryos? It may be clear to some people that these embryos have some value but then some lines may need to be drawn in a way that steers clear of any issues or processes that would be considered unethical or revealing in terms of genetic data.



StemLife's note:

With regards to the first 2 questions posed to me, I'll usually tell my audience that if you are taken ill and it is a condition treatable with stem cell therapy, healthy inside = healthy outside. Our cardiac stem cell therapy patients have been able to lead more energetic lives than before and as a consequence, reduced their dependency on vaso-dilators; our diabetic foot ulcer patients have also experienced a sharp decrease in ischaemic pain post stem cell infusion, thereby reducing their dependency on pain killers which can dull the mind and normal bodily activity.

However, we do not rule out the possibility that one day, cord blood stem cells or peripheral blood stem cells may be used by the individual who banked them, for purposes of tissue reconstruction or stimulation for repair. Never know, with all this interest and research investment globally, it might come sooner than we think!

Cord Blood Stem cells for Multiple Sclerosis? Another report of successful treatment

I had an enquiry about using cord blood stem cells for multiple sclerosis (MS) this week and it appears that cases of multiple sclerosis in Malaysia are not insignificant in number. I referred the enquirer to my previous 2 blog entries ([1],[2]) for information on who performed the therapy and its reported outcome and whilst browsing found another article which also describes the procedure and its outcome.

My belief is that the clinic which conducted the treatment may be the very same one in Rotterdam mentioned previously and the price for the therapy quoted is largely similar (GBP 13,500). A lady suffering from MS, Julia Sandeman (33 years old) was previously confined to a wheelchair and apparently had no sensation in her limbs. After the stem cell infusion, she was able to balance upright in a pool and regained some sensation in her limbs. The article mentions that before her condition started, she was a dancer and had a daughter 5 years ago. Her hope is that she would be able to walk alongside her daughter on a beach. Her condition deteriorated fairly rapidly and her vision was affected, as was sensation in her limbs.

Apparently, the cord blood stem cells were injected into the acupuncture points in her body in February this year. Her father vouches for her improvement and has observed her move her foot and steadying her hand enough to send a text message. Additionally, her father is willing to liquidate some of his assets in order to fund further treatment for her in the hope that she will improve much more.

I am not sure why stem cells injected specifically into acupuncture points would help to re-myelinate nerve tissue or perhaps play a role in immuno-modulation to stop the immune attack, but these observations are interesting and in science and medicine, many of the body's functions remain nature's secret and have not been able to be explained by current analysis (even acupuncture is not well explained in western medicine despite its clearly effective use for thousands of years!).

Clearly though, its taken 5 months to see this change and it will be interesting to see whether she'll improve after another 5. The Dutch clinic seems to attract quite a number of people in the UK. I'm wondering how many MS patients they have treated already and whether the results are consistent. Given that this area has received a lot of media attention and hailed successes, I'm sure it won't be long before its revealed to us- let's pray that this isn't a fraud and is indeed an experimental therapy worth trying.

Cavan General Hospital Gives in on Harvest of Cord Blood Stem Cells

Hurray for Catherina MacCauley's newborn baby!

Caven General Hospital which had previously refused its patient's request to collect umbilical cord blood stem cells has given in to media and industry pressure and agreed to permit its own hospital staff to perform the collection procedure after a confidential waiver was signed. The baby has already had its cord blood stem cells collected and banked.

The reason stated for not permitting the procedure in the first place was that hospital management was worried about liability should the procedure fail.

There are 2 salient points which I'd like to highlight here:

1) The converse liability of not permitting a patient a choice to bank- could the mother sue the hospital if her baby was diagnosed subsequently with a condition which its own cord blood stem cells could be used to treat? (..and possibly died as a result of not having the stem cells for therapy?)

2) I'm surprised that the bank Ms. MacCauley chose did not have a waiver already prepared for the doctor and hospital to sign. (StemLife has this in place for all doctors, hospital staff and everyone involved in the collection. Umbilical cord blood is not collected in the event where the safety of mother or baby is compromised)

That lawyers and risk management specialists had to be consulted on something which is pretty routine (cord blood is currently collected for neo-natal testing for G6PD and TSH), which poses no significant harm to mother or child (proven in probably almost a million babies cord blood stem cells collected and banked worldwide over the last 17 years) and with support from their own staff would take so much to achieve.

Having said that though, its always about education and whether this topic touches a personal and compassionate nerve. Many articles cite the minimal chances of use and some doctors cite these articles to their patients. But while a balanced view must be presented to every patient, so should its corresponding opportunity for patients to bank their babies stem cells.

The chances may be slim for cancer (last published estimates several years ago are 1:20,000, but I seem to have many friends whose family members have had cancer so I think this statistic is out of date) but think about the other uses which may come online for the healing and repair of damaged tissue (accidents? sports injuries? infection related injuries?) or for degenerative conditions such as heart, liver, joints or eyes. In these cases, drugs or surgery can help reduce the pain and prolong life, but once the damage is done, most patients are never able to return quite to the lifestyle they had before the onset of the symptoms. It is this return to active life that stem cells aims to achieve in conjunction with current modes of therapy.

Most of us are likely and lucky to be born healthy, but it is down to our own pre-emptive action to stay healthy which is what keeps us productive and alive.

Lack of Cord Blood Collection Services at Cavan General Hospital in Ireland

I was most disappointed to read about the case of Catriona McCauley, a stem cell scientist who has worked in stem cell research for multi-national pharmaceutical companies and is in the know of the benefits of stem cells.

THE CASE:

Ms. McCauley had already signed up for stem cell banking with an Irish cord blood bank and the doctors at the hospital where she is due to deliver have denied her request of assisting with the cord blood collection (which, by the way, only takes 5-10 minutes of the doctor's time and is "extremely easy" see quote in article by Obstetric doctor Gerry Rafferty).

She said that she will have to extract the blood herself after she gives birth (how ridiculous!!) as the doctors and management staff of the hospital believe that there is "insufficient" evidence to support cord blood stem cell storage. Additionally, they are concerned about the ethics, logistics and potential litigation.


All of these points can be simply addressed:


Ethics: It is collected with patient's consent -causing no harm to the baby- from the placenta and umbilical cord which contains blood that's going to be discarded anyway. The patient will also be paying for all costs involved.

Logistics: Irish cord blood stem cell bank and parents should be able to sort this out, it isn't the hospital's responsibility to send it to the processing facility.

Potential Litigation: Typically the patient signs a waiver for the collection, indemnifying the doctor, hospital and anyone related to the facility. As long as all the factors of non-viable collection are properly explained, most parents understand.


THE RATIONALE:

Critics of this service always quote the figure of a child ever needing its own stem cells to be in the range of 1 in 20,000 but what diseases does that take into account? Only cancer? And in what span of time? How about projecting forward for a lifetime? (think heart disease, stroke, joints, limb ischemia*... all conditions not to be sniffed at).

Doctors may also wish to acknowledge that patients have a right to invest in the various types of insurance policies for their children, but unlike any traditional insurance policies, the possible applications of stem cell therapy continues to grow every month.

I wonder if they would permit the cord blood collection if she already had a child who needed the stem cells for therapy?

My medical director gave me an analogy in his area of specialty. Recall the days when epidurals (spinal anaesthesia) first started, it was believed by many that you would suffer spinal damage for the rest of your life. Now, with the improved instruments and greater imaging power to guide doctors in training, the technique has become so commonplace that all hospitals offering anaesthesia provide the service as another tick on the delivery checklist (yes international readers, Malaysian obstetric care is quite up to-date).

Cord Blood Collection should be a tick on a hospital checklist; hospital management should actively take part in continual medical education to keep up with the scientific pace and be on the lookout for revolutionary healthcare services.

Ms. McCauley, get your cord blood stem cell bank to help with the collection if they can**. Otherwise, you could consider selecting a hospital that has a sympathetic management and clinical team who will facilitate your request.



*While no stem cell banks can guarantee that your baby's cord blood stem cells will cure the diseases mentioned (eg. heart disease, cancer, anemias, etc.), I don't know of any doctor, surgeon or hospital who would guarantee the success of any existing invasive procedure conducted in their facility either.


**StemLife acknowledges our tireless collaborators. Obstetric doctors and nurses who make StemLife's cord blood collection service available for patients (in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia & Singapore) and do their utmost to ensure that their patients have the greatest number of stem cells for future therapy with minimal risks of contamination. You have already helped save 2 StemLife family members.