by Luke Dodds
Having a baby can
inspire new parents
to try the latest method for
ensuring their child's health. _(1)_
Cord blood is collected
immediately after a baby is born. The blood is valuable because it
is rich in stem cells that can be used in treating diseases like childhood cancers and
immune system disorders. _(2)_ Stem cells,
on the other hand, can easily
turn into useful red blood cells, white blood cells, and
platelets (血小板), which
restore the immune system and help patients become healthy again. Although stem cells can also be taken from other sources, cord blood stem cells are especially valuable because they are easily accepted into a patient's body, _(3)_ The
potential for future uses of stem cells, such as the creation of entire
rgans, is another reason people are considering storing their baby's cord blood.
However, there are
drawbacks. _(4)_ Second, the effort might be wasted since it's highly unlikely that a stem cell
transplant will ever be needed. And third, if such a transplant were necessary, it's
doubtful that the child's own cord blood would be better than
that from another
donor. Furthermore, even if a child's disease can be treated with cord blood, _(5)_ For these reasons, doctors
discourage private cord blood
storage, but support the
donation of cord blood to public blood banks. If a transplant were necessary, a likely match could be found in a public bank.
Storing a child's cord blood could possibly save his or her life
someday. However, it could also
turn out to be a waste of resources and money. Despite the drawbacks, many parents are choosing to
spend money
on cord blood storage,
just in case. (A)
Treatment of such diseases normally
involves radiation that can
be harmful to the patient.
(B)
To begin with, storing cord blood is quite expensive.
(C)
it may
be likely that the child's own cord blood stem cells carry the same
defect that caused the disease.
(D) while other types of stem cells are often
rejected.
(E) Recently, that method has been storing the blood from newborn babies'
umbilical cords (臍帶).
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