With healing powers are well known to the practitioners of traditional / alternative medicine for perhaps thousands of years, is Ginko biloba still holds its own as a 21st Century wonder drug?
By: Ringo Bones
As a little medicinal herb that could is probably in use in traditional Chinese medicine to improve blood circulation that dates back centuries, Ginko biloba had been a subject of recent medical studies. With results pointing to the fact that Ginko biloba could also improve memory. While even more recent studies have shown that this herbal wonder drug can also improve the overall brain function in those suffering from dementia.
The 33 previously documented clinical trials of Ginko biloba – some dating as far back as 1976 - are now reexamined by scientists at Oxford University in order to reassess the previous results. The assessment of the previous clinical trials have shown that patients who took up to 200 milligrams of Ginko biloba herbal supplements on a daily basis for up to a year did better in standardized cognitive and memory tests. While further evaluation of the data obtained from past studies points to the possibility that Ginko biloba could slow down the on-going age-related degenerative processes of the brain.
Dr. James Warner, a senior lecturer at London’s Imperial College points out that there is a growing consensus of test results on the on-going medical research into Ginko biloba that it causes blood vessels to dilate, thus improving blood flow to the brain. Ginko biloba also makes blood less likely to clot due to its blood thinning properties. The herb is also high in antioxidants, which protects nerve cells against free radical damage.
With its blood thinning properties an overriding issue on the safety of its use as an herbal health supplement, Ginko biloba – like aspirin – should be prescribed under medical supervision. Also, patients should be mindful if their other medications will have adverse side-effects when taken alongside Ginko biloba herbal health supplements. Just because it falls under the purview of alternative medicine / traditional medicine / herbal medicine doesn’t make Ginko biloba 100% safe.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Tea: The Latest Miracle Health Drink?
Experts used to believe that the only good tea does to our body is its caffeine content that gives you that inexplicable feel-good factor, could they be in for a nasty surprise?
By: Vanessa Uy
Long dismissed as nothing more that a source of caffeine and hype – or worse – coffee’s poorer cousin. But the latest studies have shown that tea has far more undiscovered health benefits that were conveniently overlooked by medical experts during previous studies.
Back in 2001, a study conducted on a group of British women who drank one or more cups of tea a day have shown that they have denser bones in comparison to women who drank no tea at all. Some of the women in the study had one cup of tea a day, while others drank more than six cups a day. But the research findings have shown that drinking more than one cup of tea a day didn't contribute additional bone density increase. The study could serve as a basis for the further study of tea as a preventive for osteoporosis, not only for the elderly, but also for future space travelers with acquired osteoporosis after prolonged exposure to weightlessness.
Also a latter study by Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization has found out that tea is one of the richest sources of antioxidants. On-going studies of antioxidants have shown that they have cancer preventive properties. Antioxidants also play a role in maintaining overall cardiovascular health. On average, tea constitutes up to 36% of one’s average dietary intake of antioxidants. Both green and black tea have shown to be potent antioxidant sources. Looks like tea have finally matured from a fad supplement to a true-blue health supplement. Only time will tell of tea’s other health benefits.
By: Vanessa Uy
Long dismissed as nothing more that a source of caffeine and hype – or worse – coffee’s poorer cousin. But the latest studies have shown that tea has far more undiscovered health benefits that were conveniently overlooked by medical experts during previous studies.
Back in 2001, a study conducted on a group of British women who drank one or more cups of tea a day have shown that they have denser bones in comparison to women who drank no tea at all. Some of the women in the study had one cup of tea a day, while others drank more than six cups a day. But the research findings have shown that drinking more than one cup of tea a day didn't contribute additional bone density increase. The study could serve as a basis for the further study of tea as a preventive for osteoporosis, not only for the elderly, but also for future space travelers with acquired osteoporosis after prolonged exposure to weightlessness.
Also a latter study by Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization has found out that tea is one of the richest sources of antioxidants. On-going studies of antioxidants have shown that they have cancer preventive properties. Antioxidants also play a role in maintaining overall cardiovascular health. On average, tea constitutes up to 36% of one’s average dietary intake of antioxidants. Both green and black tea have shown to be potent antioxidant sources. Looks like tea have finally matured from a fad supplement to a true-blue health supplement. Only time will tell of tea’s other health benefits.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Cyber-Chondria: An Unchecked Epidemic?
Cyber-chondria or self-diagnosis via the Internet has been steadily growing since everyone learned of that “free clinic” on the Web. Will this “dangerous epidemic” ever be checked?
By: Vanessa Uy
Ever since surfing on the Internet for academic research became fashionable during the latter part of the 1990’s, anyone with a middle school-level grasp of the English language can – with the aid of relatively foolproof late 20th Century-era search engines – uncover relatively esoteric medical entries on the Internet. Thus the disease called cyber-chondria – also known as surf-diagnosis – was born.
The term cyber-chondria is a “cyberspace-era corruption” of hypochondria, which is an extreme depression of the mind often centered on imaginary physical ailments. Doctors had always advised us common folks against self-diagnosis, which is the frequent cause of hypochondriasis, especially those with very scant medical knowledge of one’s own anatomy and physiology beyond that of the soap opera General Hospital.
The perils behind cyber-chondria was lampooned in an episode of “The Simpsons” when Lisa Simpson tricked her dad Homer and her brother Bart that the two of them had contracted leprosy in order for the two of them to adopt a more "sanitary" lifestyle. In reality according to the latest research, on-line self-diagnosis / surf-diagnosis can usually lead to cyber-chondria when someone of scant medical knowledge and training manages to stumble into websites about exotic diseases whose symptomatology resembles their current condition. When in truth, they could have just mundane – even minor – health problems.
The problems posed by on-line self-diagnosis is not only when someone is bamboozled into purchasing on-line really expensive “miracle cures” that could treat their “imaginary illnesses”, but also, they could uncover diseases that require extremely dangerous medication in order to cure. Like being mistaken during the course of your on-line medical self-diagnosis that in order to get better, you should take arsenic and mercury-based medication. Which you have the unfortunate misfortune of having one still available in your medicine cabinet.
By: Vanessa Uy
Ever since surfing on the Internet for academic research became fashionable during the latter part of the 1990’s, anyone with a middle school-level grasp of the English language can – with the aid of relatively foolproof late 20th Century-era search engines – uncover relatively esoteric medical entries on the Internet. Thus the disease called cyber-chondria – also known as surf-diagnosis – was born.
The term cyber-chondria is a “cyberspace-era corruption” of hypochondria, which is an extreme depression of the mind often centered on imaginary physical ailments. Doctors had always advised us common folks against self-diagnosis, which is the frequent cause of hypochondriasis, especially those with very scant medical knowledge of one’s own anatomy and physiology beyond that of the soap opera General Hospital.
The perils behind cyber-chondria was lampooned in an episode of “The Simpsons” when Lisa Simpson tricked her dad Homer and her brother Bart that the two of them had contracted leprosy in order for the two of them to adopt a more "sanitary" lifestyle. In reality according to the latest research, on-line self-diagnosis / surf-diagnosis can usually lead to cyber-chondria when someone of scant medical knowledge and training manages to stumble into websites about exotic diseases whose symptomatology resembles their current condition. When in truth, they could have just mundane – even minor – health problems.
The problems posed by on-line self-diagnosis is not only when someone is bamboozled into purchasing on-line really expensive “miracle cures” that could treat their “imaginary illnesses”, but also, they could uncover diseases that require extremely dangerous medication in order to cure. Like being mistaken during the course of your on-line medical self-diagnosis that in order to get better, you should take arsenic and mercury-based medication. Which you have the unfortunate misfortune of having one still available in your medicine cabinet.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Headphones and Heart Pacemakers: Lethal Bedfellows?
Given that AARP baby-boomers who were there for the birth of rock n’ roll have bought the i-Pod craze hook line and sinker, will this be an accident waiting to happen?
By: Ringo Bones
Yep, it’s true. During the 1970’s and 1980’s it was microwave ovens, now the magnetic headphones of i-Pods might be endangering users with implanted heart pace makers. And given that this Holiday Season where baby-boomers who had recently become AARP members might be getting / receiving their first or umpteenth i-Pod players should be careful about using magnetic headphones of their i-Pods.
Cardiologists across America had recently warned that the fairly powerful magnets of the headphones used in personal stereos / Walkman / i-Pods can interfere with proper heart pacemaker function and also that of defibrillator-type implants. This is especially true when fairly powerful magnets are placed squarely on the pacemaker. Given that the inductive coils of implanted pacemakers that deliver live-saving jolts of electricity to the heart are very susceptible to external magnetic fields, placing a magnet of sufficient power squarely on a pacemaker could interfere with the device’s intended function. Either the voltage level delivered by the pacemaker could go dangerously too high or too low. Though cardiologists had warned of microwave oven radiation of heart pacemaker recipients during the 1980’s, they seem to overlook the dangers of hand-held police radar which operate at the K-Band - i.e. microwave oven frequencies.
Though the normal placement of headphones for normal listening – on the ears – is quite far enough from the usual pacemaker location, keeping magnets away from one’s pacemaker could be more than just a “mere” precautionary measure. Doctors have not yet warned patients with pacemakers who reposition their loudspeakers, given that those have more powerful magnets touching squarely at their chest area. To be safe, people with pacemakers should avoid devices with strong magnetic fields when possible. This prudent practice could make our aging baby-boomers rocking for the foreseeable future.
By: Ringo Bones
Yep, it’s true. During the 1970’s and 1980’s it was microwave ovens, now the magnetic headphones of i-Pods might be endangering users with implanted heart pace makers. And given that this Holiday Season where baby-boomers who had recently become AARP members might be getting / receiving their first or umpteenth i-Pod players should be careful about using magnetic headphones of their i-Pods.
Cardiologists across America had recently warned that the fairly powerful magnets of the headphones used in personal stereos / Walkman / i-Pods can interfere with proper heart pacemaker function and also that of defibrillator-type implants. This is especially true when fairly powerful magnets are placed squarely on the pacemaker. Given that the inductive coils of implanted pacemakers that deliver live-saving jolts of electricity to the heart are very susceptible to external magnetic fields, placing a magnet of sufficient power squarely on a pacemaker could interfere with the device’s intended function. Either the voltage level delivered by the pacemaker could go dangerously too high or too low. Though cardiologists had warned of microwave oven radiation of heart pacemaker recipients during the 1980’s, they seem to overlook the dangers of hand-held police radar which operate at the K-Band - i.e. microwave oven frequencies.
Though the normal placement of headphones for normal listening – on the ears – is quite far enough from the usual pacemaker location, keeping magnets away from one’s pacemaker could be more than just a “mere” precautionary measure. Doctors have not yet warned patients with pacemakers who reposition their loudspeakers, given that those have more powerful magnets touching squarely at their chest area. To be safe, people with pacemakers should avoid devices with strong magnetic fields when possible. This prudent practice could make our aging baby-boomers rocking for the foreseeable future.
Friday, November 21, 2008
A New Era in Transplant Medicine and Tissue Engineering
A recently performed medical procedure performed by Spanish doctors successfully replaced a damaged trachea. Will the “Holy Grail” of tissue engineering – replacing whole organs – be that much closer?
By: Vanessa Uy
Doctors in Spain recently replaced one of the windpipes or trachea of 30-year-old Claudia Castillo after a bout with tuberculosis damaged the organ. What made the procedure unique is that the donated trachea came from a non-genetically compatible donor. Plus, the new procedure made the use of post-operative anti-rejection drugs unnecessary by making the donated organ acquire an all-out total histocompatibility with the recipient.
The uniqueness of this new medical procedure involves the use of the recipient’s own stem cells to make the donated organ rejection-proof, even if it came from a non-compatible donor. The new procedure involved a trachea obtained from a recently deceased organ donor. The donated trachea is then cleansed of the donor’s own genetic material until all that is left is just a collagen scaffold of a trachea. The next step involved infusing the donated trachea collagen scaffold with Claudia Castillo’s own stem cells to make the donated trachea both immunologically and genetically compatible – total histocompatibility - with her own body.
This cutting-edge medical procedure was made possible due to a collaboration of three doctors from Spain, Britain, and Italy. At present, this new medical procedure is still prohibitively expensive to be done on a routine basis. But the success of this particular trial serves as a proof of concept that stem-cell therapy works in increasing transplanted organ’s histocompatibility with their recipients and is now more than a mere laboratory curiosity.
Even though this newfangled medical procedure is seen by everyone as the newest and latest in medical science, it can trace it’s roots back to more than 40 years of laboratory research. Back in 1965, Marshall R. Urist of the University of California at Los Angeles probably kicked-off the science of tissue engineering – creating semi-synthetic living organs that can be used as human replacement parts – by demonstrating that new bony tissue would form in test animals that received implants of powdered bone. Fast forward to 2006, a team of American doctors successfully “created” a human bladder by growing the organ out of stem cells - which can be very useful in treating urinary incontinence of the elderly and bladder reflux in children without the need of post-operative anti-rejection drugs and their negative side-effects.
Before receiving the life-saving tracheal transplant, Claudia Castillo was often out of breath due to her tuberculosis damaged left trachea, if left untreated, her left might become disease becoming withered and then die off. The new procedure that gave Claudia Castillo the genetically compatible trachea really did suit her particular case. If she had undergone a “conventional” tracheal transplant procedure, it might have necessitated the use of anti-rejection medication. Anti-rejection medication would have been the last thing she needs because these drugs are notorious for wrecking havoc with the human immune system. Thus making her susceptible with diseases that attack people with weakened immune systems like tuberculosis, which was the root cause of Claudia Castillo’s problem in the first place. Worse still, she might contract pneumonia, which often happens to patients taking anti-rejection medication. But thanks to this new medical procedure, those worries are behind her or the next patient who undergoes this procedure. This truly is the new era of transplant medicine and tissue engineering. The next step now is to make the procedure much cheaper than what it current costs so that more people that badly needed it can avail of this particular procedure without going bankrupt.
By: Vanessa Uy
Doctors in Spain recently replaced one of the windpipes or trachea of 30-year-old Claudia Castillo after a bout with tuberculosis damaged the organ. What made the procedure unique is that the donated trachea came from a non-genetically compatible donor. Plus, the new procedure made the use of post-operative anti-rejection drugs unnecessary by making the donated organ acquire an all-out total histocompatibility with the recipient.
The uniqueness of this new medical procedure involves the use of the recipient’s own stem cells to make the donated organ rejection-proof, even if it came from a non-compatible donor. The new procedure involved a trachea obtained from a recently deceased organ donor. The donated trachea is then cleansed of the donor’s own genetic material until all that is left is just a collagen scaffold of a trachea. The next step involved infusing the donated trachea collagen scaffold with Claudia Castillo’s own stem cells to make the donated trachea both immunologically and genetically compatible – total histocompatibility - with her own body.
This cutting-edge medical procedure was made possible due to a collaboration of three doctors from Spain, Britain, and Italy. At present, this new medical procedure is still prohibitively expensive to be done on a routine basis. But the success of this particular trial serves as a proof of concept that stem-cell therapy works in increasing transplanted organ’s histocompatibility with their recipients and is now more than a mere laboratory curiosity.
Even though this newfangled medical procedure is seen by everyone as the newest and latest in medical science, it can trace it’s roots back to more than 40 years of laboratory research. Back in 1965, Marshall R. Urist of the University of California at Los Angeles probably kicked-off the science of tissue engineering – creating semi-synthetic living organs that can be used as human replacement parts – by demonstrating that new bony tissue would form in test animals that received implants of powdered bone. Fast forward to 2006, a team of American doctors successfully “created” a human bladder by growing the organ out of stem cells - which can be very useful in treating urinary incontinence of the elderly and bladder reflux in children without the need of post-operative anti-rejection drugs and their negative side-effects.
Before receiving the life-saving tracheal transplant, Claudia Castillo was often out of breath due to her tuberculosis damaged left trachea, if left untreated, her left might become disease becoming withered and then die off. The new procedure that gave Claudia Castillo the genetically compatible trachea really did suit her particular case. If she had undergone a “conventional” tracheal transplant procedure, it might have necessitated the use of anti-rejection medication. Anti-rejection medication would have been the last thing she needs because these drugs are notorious for wrecking havoc with the human immune system. Thus making her susceptible with diseases that attack people with weakened immune systems like tuberculosis, which was the root cause of Claudia Castillo’s problem in the first place. Worse still, she might contract pneumonia, which often happens to patients taking anti-rejection medication. But thanks to this new medical procedure, those worries are behind her or the next patient who undergoes this procedure. This truly is the new era of transplant medicine and tissue engineering. The next step now is to make the procedure much cheaper than what it current costs so that more people that badly needed it can avail of this particular procedure without going bankrupt.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Cervical Cancer Vaccine Innovation: Still a Long Way to Go?
With one of this years Nobel Prize for Medicine’s recipient had worked for over thirty years on the virus that causes cervical cancer, will a cure be not that far behind?
By: Vanessa Uy
German-born Harald Zur Hausen became one of the recipients of the 2008 Nobel Prize for Medicine on his work on the human papilloma virus or HPV as the cause of cervical cancer. His work on the relation of HPV and cervical cancer dates back to the 1970’s. During the 1990’s, Harald Zur Hausen obtained proof on the role of the human papilloma virus in causing cervical cancer.
The Nobel assembly focused their attention on the way Harald Zur Hausen “went against current dogma” when he found that some variants of the human papilloma virus, or HPV, caused cervical cancer. He realized that genetic material like DNA of some HPV variants or species could be detected in cervical cancer tumors. Harald Zur Hausen then uncovered a family of HPV types, which only some of them cause cancer.
Cervical cancer is a form of cancer that affects women usually of childbearing age. Its tumors develop in the cervix, the entrance between the vagina and the uterus. It was only when Harald Zur Hausen’s work passed peer review scrutiny that the medical community reached the consensus that cervical cancer is caused by some variants of the human papilloma virus or HPV.
According to the work of Munoz N. et al as published in the New England Journal of Medicine published in 2003, there are more than 200 variants or types of HPV and at least 30 of these cause cervical cancer. This particular study showed that the cancer causing variants of HPV caused 99.7% of cervical cancer cases. Globally, HPV variants designated as types 16, 18, 45, and 31 account for 80% of the cases of cervical cancer.
On an incidence basis, cervical cancer is the second most common form of cancer affecting women worldwide, with half a million women diagnosed annually. Latest studies estimates that up to 50 to 80% of women will acquire an HPV infection during their lifetime. Usually via persistent infection of the cancer causing variants of HPV resulting in pre-cancerous lesions and cervical cancer.
The bad news is that human papilloma virus infection can be easily transmitted via skin-to-skin genital contact and one could become infected with the HPV virus without “normal” / “conventional” sexual intercourse. Infected men carry the HPV virus on the skin of their genitalia and yet they don’t succumb to the virus’ cancer-causing effects. Using condoms may reduce the risk but are by no means foolproof. Women who are sexually active – this means of childbearing age in a “civilized society” – are at risk of exposure to HPV variants that cause cervical cancer.
The Pap smear is currently the most important screening method that has been proven to be very good in early detection of cervical cancer. By taking a sample of cervical cells, a pathologist prepares them on a slide for microscopic examination. The microscopic examination by the pathologist determines whether the cell sample looks normal or abnormal. The earlier the pre-cancerous changes in the cervix are detected, the more positive will be the prognosis for a recovery.
The frequency of Pap smears usually varies with a woman’s age. A good point to start would be about 3 years after the start of regular sexual activity. Ideally, women should get a Pap Smear every year until the age of 30. After 30, women who have had 3 consecutive normal results on their annual Pap Smear can be re-screened every 2 to 3 years. Screening may be done if the woman has abnormal vaginal bleeding, pain, sores, or itching.
Since Harald Zur Hausen’s study of the link between human papilloma virus and cervical cancer, newer screening methods and treatments for the disease had been devised. Cervical cancer can now be detected via HPV DNA test to check for the presence of cancer-causing variants of HPV, which many doctors and gynecologists had praised for its accuracy. The development of a vaccine against cancer-causing strains of HPV has fostered a great hope in the fight against cervical cancer. Though Harald Zur Hausen says that more needs to be done since currently available HPV vaccines do not have a broad enough spectrum to combat all strains of cervical cancer-causing HPV.
By: Vanessa Uy
German-born Harald Zur Hausen became one of the recipients of the 2008 Nobel Prize for Medicine on his work on the human papilloma virus or HPV as the cause of cervical cancer. His work on the relation of HPV and cervical cancer dates back to the 1970’s. During the 1990’s, Harald Zur Hausen obtained proof on the role of the human papilloma virus in causing cervical cancer.
The Nobel assembly focused their attention on the way Harald Zur Hausen “went against current dogma” when he found that some variants of the human papilloma virus, or HPV, caused cervical cancer. He realized that genetic material like DNA of some HPV variants or species could be detected in cervical cancer tumors. Harald Zur Hausen then uncovered a family of HPV types, which only some of them cause cancer.
Cervical cancer is a form of cancer that affects women usually of childbearing age. Its tumors develop in the cervix, the entrance between the vagina and the uterus. It was only when Harald Zur Hausen’s work passed peer review scrutiny that the medical community reached the consensus that cervical cancer is caused by some variants of the human papilloma virus or HPV.
According to the work of Munoz N. et al as published in the New England Journal of Medicine published in 2003, there are more than 200 variants or types of HPV and at least 30 of these cause cervical cancer. This particular study showed that the cancer causing variants of HPV caused 99.7% of cervical cancer cases. Globally, HPV variants designated as types 16, 18, 45, and 31 account for 80% of the cases of cervical cancer.
On an incidence basis, cervical cancer is the second most common form of cancer affecting women worldwide, with half a million women diagnosed annually. Latest studies estimates that up to 50 to 80% of women will acquire an HPV infection during their lifetime. Usually via persistent infection of the cancer causing variants of HPV resulting in pre-cancerous lesions and cervical cancer.
The bad news is that human papilloma virus infection can be easily transmitted via skin-to-skin genital contact and one could become infected with the HPV virus without “normal” / “conventional” sexual intercourse. Infected men carry the HPV virus on the skin of their genitalia and yet they don’t succumb to the virus’ cancer-causing effects. Using condoms may reduce the risk but are by no means foolproof. Women who are sexually active – this means of childbearing age in a “civilized society” – are at risk of exposure to HPV variants that cause cervical cancer.
The Pap smear is currently the most important screening method that has been proven to be very good in early detection of cervical cancer. By taking a sample of cervical cells, a pathologist prepares them on a slide for microscopic examination. The microscopic examination by the pathologist determines whether the cell sample looks normal or abnormal. The earlier the pre-cancerous changes in the cervix are detected, the more positive will be the prognosis for a recovery.
The frequency of Pap smears usually varies with a woman’s age. A good point to start would be about 3 years after the start of regular sexual activity. Ideally, women should get a Pap Smear every year until the age of 30. After 30, women who have had 3 consecutive normal results on their annual Pap Smear can be re-screened every 2 to 3 years. Screening may be done if the woman has abnormal vaginal bleeding, pain, sores, or itching.
Since Harald Zur Hausen’s study of the link between human papilloma virus and cervical cancer, newer screening methods and treatments for the disease had been devised. Cervical cancer can now be detected via HPV DNA test to check for the presence of cancer-causing variants of HPV, which many doctors and gynecologists had praised for its accuracy. The development of a vaccine against cancer-causing strains of HPV has fostered a great hope in the fight against cervical cancer. Though Harald Zur Hausen says that more needs to be done since currently available HPV vaccines do not have a broad enough spectrum to combat all strains of cervical cancer-causing HPV.
Monday, September 8, 2008
A Healthcare Plan for Cord Blood Storage: Not Economically Viable?
Umbilical cord blood is probably the most ethical source of stem cells for medical research and therapeutic use. Some healthcare providers have been flirting with a scheme to store one for a fee. Another unnecessary medical expense?
By: Vanessa Uy
Stymied by the ethical row over the extraction of stem cells from early trimester aborted fetuses, medical science has started to search them from other sources. Recently, the medical community has found out that umbilical cord blood can be a viable source of stem cells. After learning from this discovery, many healthcare providers from around the world had offered their services – for a fee of course – to cryogenically store your newly born baby’s umbilical cord blood for up to 20 years. The procedure usually involves cryogenically cooling the umbilical cord blood to be stored with liquid nitrogen for later use as a source of therapeutic stem cells. Does this procedure remind you of something?
In Phoenix, Arizona a company called ALCOR became rich – but mostly famous - during the 1980’s by offering a “medical procedure” of storing someone’s recently diseased loved one cryogenically for “posterity”. Posterity is somewhat open to interpretation on what the company hopes to accomplish. It truly means sometime in the far-off future when medical science advance to a level were it is possible to revive and eventually cure what caused this certain person to die of in the first place. And by the way, ALCOR charges 300,000 dollars for a whole body cryogenic storage and 100,000 dollars for cryogenically storing just the head since according to them a new body can be cloned. This was in “when Ronald Reagan was still leader of the free world “ US dollars by the way. Given that majority in the medical community – until now – has doubts about ALCOR ‘s fiscal and medico-legal practicality of the services they are offering, should we be storing our newly born baby’s cord blood cryogenically for possible future use?
Given the relatively small volume of umbilical cord blood that would be stored, it would be way cheaper to store it cryogenically for 20 or so years compared to storing a recently deceased person after being prepped-up for cryogenic storage for an indefinite period of time (possibly for centuries?). And given that advances in stem cell therapy has been unnecessarily hampered by the politics surrounding its ethical implications. Medical research into stem cell therapy has been incrementally advancing in the past few years despite the challenges of demagoguery and petty political lobbying. The expense of storing umbilical cord blood for possible future use could certainly be a worthwhile investment.
Despite of the possible advantages, cryogenically storing umbilical cord blood for possible future use still has a sizable number of detractors in the medical community. Expert in the medical field has doubts whether the most common application of this stem cell resource – childhood leukemia therapy – is a good use of this very limited resource. It is already well known that a child’s own previously stored umbilical cord blood can’t be used for leukemia treatment because this form of blood cancer has a very high rate of reoccurrence. The previously stored umbilical cord blood would just simply provide temporary – albeit somewhat pricey – relief. But who knows what future developments might bring. And also there is a likely possibility that a number of children will be “lucky” enough not to be afflicted with diseases that necessitates the use of their previously stored umbilical cord blood for treatment.
Whether the practice is a waste of money or a very wise investment for the future, it Is ultimately up to the customer whether the services provided by certain healthcare companies to cryogenically store their newly born baby’s umbilical cord blood really is worth it. The most likely problems that would likely come up with regards to this issue is that not enough customers who avail themselves of this service didn’t get an informed enough consent in justifying their decision.
By: Vanessa Uy
Stymied by the ethical row over the extraction of stem cells from early trimester aborted fetuses, medical science has started to search them from other sources. Recently, the medical community has found out that umbilical cord blood can be a viable source of stem cells. After learning from this discovery, many healthcare providers from around the world had offered their services – for a fee of course – to cryogenically store your newly born baby’s umbilical cord blood for up to 20 years. The procedure usually involves cryogenically cooling the umbilical cord blood to be stored with liquid nitrogen for later use as a source of therapeutic stem cells. Does this procedure remind you of something?
In Phoenix, Arizona a company called ALCOR became rich – but mostly famous - during the 1980’s by offering a “medical procedure” of storing someone’s recently diseased loved one cryogenically for “posterity”. Posterity is somewhat open to interpretation on what the company hopes to accomplish. It truly means sometime in the far-off future when medical science advance to a level were it is possible to revive and eventually cure what caused this certain person to die of in the first place. And by the way, ALCOR charges 300,000 dollars for a whole body cryogenic storage and 100,000 dollars for cryogenically storing just the head since according to them a new body can be cloned. This was in “when Ronald Reagan was still leader of the free world “ US dollars by the way. Given that majority in the medical community – until now – has doubts about ALCOR ‘s fiscal and medico-legal practicality of the services they are offering, should we be storing our newly born baby’s cord blood cryogenically for possible future use?
Given the relatively small volume of umbilical cord blood that would be stored, it would be way cheaper to store it cryogenically for 20 or so years compared to storing a recently deceased person after being prepped-up for cryogenic storage for an indefinite period of time (possibly for centuries?). And given that advances in stem cell therapy has been unnecessarily hampered by the politics surrounding its ethical implications. Medical research into stem cell therapy has been incrementally advancing in the past few years despite the challenges of demagoguery and petty political lobbying. The expense of storing umbilical cord blood for possible future use could certainly be a worthwhile investment.
Despite of the possible advantages, cryogenically storing umbilical cord blood for possible future use still has a sizable number of detractors in the medical community. Expert in the medical field has doubts whether the most common application of this stem cell resource – childhood leukemia therapy – is a good use of this very limited resource. It is already well known that a child’s own previously stored umbilical cord blood can’t be used for leukemia treatment because this form of blood cancer has a very high rate of reoccurrence. The previously stored umbilical cord blood would just simply provide temporary – albeit somewhat pricey – relief. But who knows what future developments might bring. And also there is a likely possibility that a number of children will be “lucky” enough not to be afflicted with diseases that necessitates the use of their previously stored umbilical cord blood for treatment.
Whether the practice is a waste of money or a very wise investment for the future, it Is ultimately up to the customer whether the services provided by certain healthcare companies to cryogenically store their newly born baby’s umbilical cord blood really is worth it. The most likely problems that would likely come up with regards to this issue is that not enough customers who avail themselves of this service didn’t get an informed enough consent in justifying their decision.
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