Keralites prefer to stem diseases umbilically

KOCHI: Aimed at providing a healthy future for their wards, Keralites have begun to opt for technological innovations to help their children tackle health conditions like Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, diabetes and a growing list of debilitating and incurable diseases.If the latest trend is something to go by, young parents in Kerala have started to use the facility of stem cell banks to store their baby’s umbilical cord blood.Though the trend has not gained popularity compared to metro cities like Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai, the concept has started showing positive results in Kerala market.“We have been successful in cities like Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai. Kerala is a market with high potential. The state being one of the most literate,  we do see that people are able to appreciate the benefits of the concept and take well-informed decisions. Currently we reach out to potential target groups only through hospitals and nursing homes. We are working on other channels, pre-natal programmes and retail channels to reach out to pregnant women in the state,” said Mayur Abhaya, president and executive director of LifeCell International, which is a major stem cell banker in the country.“We have over 30,000 customers across India who have preserved their baby’s umbilical cord stem cells with us. In Kerala, we are gaining good acceptance among the people,” he said.The umbilical cord blood and cord tissue are rich sources of stem cells and they can be used to treat over 75 serious ailments. The technological innovation in stem cell research has enabled easy preservation of the umbilical cord blood and cord tissue. Stem cells for preservation are collected from the just-born’s umbilical cord and it is stored in sub-minimal temperature in liquid nitrogen. Cochin Gynaec Society (CGS) founder president Dr Gracy Thomas said that they had been of late encouraging young parents to deposit their baby’s umbilical cord in stem cell banks. “Path-breaking findings in stem cell research can treat diseases like cancer, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s. But due to high cost involved in depositing umbilical cord, people in middle and low-middle income groups are not opting for it right now,” she added.