Lighthouse Independent Media recently lost one of our designers to a much dreaded illness, leukemia. It started with a minor bout of bleeding gums in September last year but by 18 January 2009, she had left us.
In her painful and heart wrenching fight to recovery, she managed to find a donor match, but the donor "disappeared" before the operation could begin. As a last alternative, the use of cord blood was introduced in her treatment. Which brings to mind, what is cord blood?
Cord blood is the extra human blood left over following childbirth. Cord blood, from the umbilical cord and the placenta, is exceptional because of the abundant blood-forming stem cells that it contains and the advantages it has over other types of stem cells.
Medicine obtained from these stem cells can be used to repair or replace cells that are diseased or damaged. Specifically, stem cells can cure or treat red blood cell diseases, white blood cell diseases, cancers and Tissue (such as heart tissue).
So what is cord blood banking?
I spoke with Victor Tay Kah Soon, director of transport, logistics, environmental & engineering services, biomedical & chemicals at Spring Singapore last month about niche concepts in logistics when the same topic of cord blood came up.
He told me that in
After the birth of a baby, these companies help to bank the newborn's umbilical cord and part of this becomes very rich cord blood that can be stored.
"At first glance, these companies look like pharmaceutical companies and [need to be] well trained in clinical aspects to be able to transport the umbilical cord, store it and after 'x' number of years down the road, if the newborn is infected with diseases, they can retrieve the cord blood which is rich blood and be able to extract the cells when the technology becomes more advance," he said.
Upon delivery, these blood cord companies arrange for a delivery person to go down to the hospital, wait for the doctor to cut the umbilical cord, place it in an air-sealed envelope which is brought back to the cord blood company, registered into a system, banked in and never do anything more until needed. The whole process of delivery and storage is frankly that of a logistics company, he said.
Pondering on his views that a cord blood company runs on the basic principles of a logistics company, I decided to call up a local cord blood group, Cordlife to find if they share his views as well.
Jerrel: What kind of services do you provide?
Customer service officer: We are a cord blood company; it is the business of storing the baby's umbilical cord blood after delivery.
Jerrel: So what kind of a company do you consider yourself? A pharmaceutical company?
Customer service officer: I would say it's under healthcare. It not pharmaceutical because this is not a pharmaceutical product, it's more of a health service.
Jerrel: You know, it would seem like a logistics company as well as you have the core functions of one. You send a delivery man to collect the cord blood in the hospital, the delivery man returns and cold storages it in in Cordlife until a need for it arises. As such it functions as a logistics company as well you think?
Customer service officer: It's not really that case, it’s not logistical in that way, I would say.
Jerrel: So what is the process like?
Customer service officer: The doctor collects the umbilical cord blood for the parents and then it is brought back to us for protecting and storage. We liaise with the parents.
Jerrel: How much does it cost to use your services?
Customer service officer: Currently, $1,400 (US$950) for the initial payment and then $250 (US$166) per year for the storage fees.
I have gathered the views from an expert in the logistics sector and also that of a cord blood bank and it seems they share differing view. Is cord blood banking really just a niche logistics company? What do you think?
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I have personally known people who have used their cord blood that they banked to heal a health condition. That is why my husband and I chose to bank with Stemcyte (a private cord blood bank) and we will be thrilled if we never have to use it, but we will be sooo grateful for it being there if we do.
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