It is possible that many of you are waiting for a child and are evaluating the possibility of conserving the blood of the umbilical cord, a service that has been in high demand in recent years. You have to take into account some important things before making a decision, but surely you are interested in knowing the history of a unique case in Spain of a four-year-old girl who is recovering favorably from brain cancer thanks to the stem cells of her umbilical cord.
The pregnancy had been normal and the girl was born perfectly healthy. When he came into the world, his parents decided to keep the stem cells of the umbilical cord blood in case he could need them tomorrow, although they couldn't imagine that would happen soon.
Two years later he was diagnosed with a very rare brain cancer, a grade 4 medulloblastoma, which was removed mostly in a surgical operation. He then underwent chemotherapy to completely remove the tumor cells, but chemotherapy not only destroys the tumor but also the patient's blood system. To recompose it, the stem cells were transplanted from their own umbilical cord removed at birth.
The stem cells migrated to the bone marrow, where they multiplied and began to generate white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets, thus initiating the regeneration of your blood system. Fourteen months after the transplant, the girl has completely rebuilt her blood system and leads a normal life.
You can't talk about healing yet, but the truth is that the girl has recovered and is slowly beating the disease. Stem cells are often used as a treatment for the regeneration of the blood system in this type of cancer, but it is the first time the stem cells of their own umbilical cord are used in a patient.
He would probably also have recovered with stem cells that were not his own, but conserving cord blood at birth is a decision that many see as "life insurance."
In any case, it must be a well-informed decision, weighing the advantages and disadvantages, the effects of this practice and the ethical considerations involved.
