Stem cells are biological cells found in the body
They serve as a repair and maintenance system for other body cells and the blood and immune systems by multiplying and transforming in to blood, bone, tissue and organ cells, when they are required to. At Smart Cells we store stem cells found in the umbilical cord blood and tissue. These potent cells find their way to injured cells and tissue in the body and begin to replace them.
What are cord blood stem cells used for?
Read more about cord blood stem cells, the way we count them and why numbers are important:
Why store my baby’s cord blood stem cells?
Stem cell therapy holds great promise for treating and perhaps one day curing many diseases. For those who are already suffering from a disease that stem cells can treat, storing stem cells may have a personal importance and relevance.
For others, it is likely that at some point in their life, they or a loved one will be affected by a disease that stem cells can treat.
It is well accepted that there are over 80 diseases for which transplants of blood-forming stem cells (Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplants (HSCT) are a standard treatment. Follow these links to see more information:
For more innovative stem cell based treatments that have not been adopted as standard therapies, patients may be treated as part of clinical trials. ClinicalTrials.gov has a database listing such trials internationally.
Fighting disease and illness
Over 30,000 cord blood transplants have taken place around the world and have been used in the treatment of:
(*Innovative early clinical trials)
Use of privately banked autologous umbilical cord blood to treat brain injuries in paediatric patients. A. Smith, J. Sun, J. Allison, M. Mimbrero-Ramirez, K. Hussain,J. Kurtzberg. Bone Marrow Transplantation, Volume 51, Issue S1 (2016), p S568. Follow the link to see more information:
Stem cells collected from your baby’s umbilical cord at birth can be used to protect your family from over 80 conditions and diseases, including Leukaemia, Anaemia, Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and Impaired Immune Systems.
Smart Cells was the first company in the UK to release stored stem cells to treat children with life-threatening illnesses, and no one has been involved in more successful transplants than us.