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Blood `insurance' Bank
By STEVE DRILL and JOHN WATTS
Caulfield Glen Eira/Port Philip Leader
14 August 2006
A ST KILDA Rd business is charging parents thousands of dollars to store their babies' umbilical cords in a laboratory fridge, in case their child develops leukemia.
Melbourne-based Biocell charges $2970 to store potentially life-saving cord blood for up to 18 years.
The business is one of three in Melbourne providing the service.
The process has critics, including the World Marrow Donor Association, which says cord blood is unlikely to be used in the treatment of cancers.
Elwood mum Libby Williamson says she is pleased to have spent most of her $4000 Federal Government "baby bonus" paying Clayton-based bio-company CellSense to store daughter Ella's cord blood.
"There's no way I could live with myself if Ella got sick and we hadn't collected the cord blood," Mrs Williamson said.
"You would be crazy not to do it as a parent if you can afford it."
BioCell medical director Associate Prof Mark Kirkland said the company was part of multinational business CyGenics, which had collected about 5000 packages globally. BioCell paid obstetricians a facilitation fee of about $100, because collecting cord blood was a recognised medical procedure.
Associate Prof Kirkland would not say how many blood packages were collected separately by BioCell, but emphasised their growing medical importance.
"Cord blood is a very rich source of stem cells," he said.
"These are cells responsible for replenishing blood and regenerating the immune system.
"Many diseases can be treated using cord blood."
The World Marrow Donor Association cord blood policy states cord blood of leukemia sufferers could have traces of the disease and could cause a recurrence of the cancer.
And Royal Children's Hospital Bone Marrow Donor Institute director Dr Annette Trickett criticised the marketing of private cord blood storage, which she said could make some parents feel bad if they didn't invest in the scheme.
But Prof Kirkland said that in 2002 a stem cell transplant was carried out to save the life of a Singaporean boy suffering from leukemia.
Would you spend $3000 to store your child's cord blood? SMS the editor, with full name and suburb, on 0402 967 387
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