JOIN USStem cells are precious master cells of our body which can be stored, grown and subsequently used to regrow lost cells, tissues, organs and even treat certain medical conditions. According to statistics, one in 20 individuals during their lifetime are at a risk of being diagnosed with any one of the 80+ medical conditions, which may eventually require a stem cell transplant.
However, the challenge is that currently, a large number of these patients in India struggle to find a matching stem cell donor or unit.
The umbilical cord — which is considered as ‘medical waste’ — is a preferred source of stem cells. The blood cells in the umbilical cord are currently used for treating several inherited genetic conditions such as leukaemia, thalassemia, multiple myeloma, cerebral palsy etc. These cells have the potential to restore normal life of the affected person.
India currently has a listing of 1,80,000 bone marrow stem cell donors which is far less than 1% of global stem cells donor base, despite the fact that our country accounts for 20% of world population.
Moreover, nearly 40-50% of these bone marrow stem cell donors are either unavailable or refuse to donate at the time of need. To avoid this uncertainty and delay, stem cells from umbilical cords which can be frozen and be made readily available to patients is an excellent option.
However, at this time, there are only about 5,000 stem cell units available in public banks in India, which is insignificant and constitute less than 1% of the global inventory.
Families that want to improve their access to stem cells resort to preserving their baby’s umbilical cord blood stem cells at private stem cell banks, even though it provides a 25% chance of being a match for the siblings. It is estimated that over four lakh such units have been stored in India for private use with an annual addition of about one lakh units.
Therefore, experts recommend creating a common pool, like a blood bank, for needy patients who require stem cell transplants. Sadly, people currently think about cord blood donation, the way they thought about blood donation 20 years ago!
If such is the situation, what is it that people can do to address their future stem cell needs? Can there be a new approach to umbilical cord blood banking in the country that can be beneficial to the child, his or her family and also to the community at large?
Ideal solution
Community Stem Cell Banking could be the ideal solution that can effectively address the challenges of sourcing matching stem cells and at affordable costs.
As per a study conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research, if 2.5 lakh stem cell units of Indian origin are made available, chances of patients in India finding a matching stem cell unit will exceed that of even a patient in advanced countries such as the US.
Around 70,000 babies are born in India everyday and the availability of a donated umbilical cord could be abundant to treat many medical conditions. This concept could leverage the country’s high birth rate to make treatment available to patients who have life threatening illnesses.
With an increasing trend of parents preserving their baby’s stem cells, community stem cell banking would help improve the inventory by more than 50,000 every year. And the human leukocyte antigen (HLA) match rate between stored stem cells and the patients who require them within India would surpass that of America’s US-National Marrow Donor Programme (NMDP) Registry data.
No doubt, community umbilical cord stem cell banking is the perfect solution to bringing technological capability to the masses — leveraging our country’s high birth rate to bring life-changing treatment available to patients who have life-threatening illnesses.
Through community banking of cord blood units, India has the potential to become the largest inventory of stem cells globally, increasing the scope of potentially life-saving stem cell transplants for babies, their families, their communities and others of Indian-origin worldwide.
Today, technology has evolved so much that your baby has the power to bless your family with a lifetime of good health! Let your baby come into the world to save your life.
(The writer is Director, Precision Oncology and Research, Asian Institute of Oncology, Somaiya Ayurvihar Cancer Care Molecular Oncology Society)