Info About Stem Cells
Posted on: 9 February 2020
Stem cells have a unique ability to go through processes that can cause them to evolve into a certain type of cell, or even eventually into bodily tissue or organs. This is why they are considered to be extremely important to the medical field. In fact, the ongoing research with stem cells can eventually lead to much more that can bring even more help to the medical field. This means having the ability to save even more lives. Stem cells are involved in many scientific experiments that are important to the future of medicine and they can play a huge role in many areas when it comes to life-saving procedures. You can find some answers to questions you may have about stem cell treatment here.
Where are stem cells retrieved from?
Embryos – Cells can be obtained from early-stage embryos. This is not one of the best ways to get stem cells because of their very high likeliness of dividing uncontrollably while being used as a treatment. This can have a very huge negative effect from a medical standpoint should the division happen and lead to problems.
Umbilical cords – Getting stem cells from umbilical cords is one of the ways that has become so well-known with the public. This is partially due to the serious increase of people who want the cord to be banked, or stored, for their infant in case there is a need for the child to make use of it in the future due to a serious medical condition.
Bone marrow – Also a well-known option, bone marrow is a great source to turn to when it comes to retrieving stem cells. An issue that comes with extracting bone marrow is the pain and downtime that it means for the person that the marrow is extracted from. Also, for the pain and process it involves, the amount of stem cells generally obtained is minimal.
Various body parts – stem cells can also be extracted from many body parts, with just a couple of examples including the pulp of a person's teeth and from fat. These stem cells can often be used for kindred procedures, such as cosmetic procedures.
How are stem cells stored?
The process for having stem cells stored is actually quite simple. There are stem cell banks that will store the stem cells in a safe manner, meaning they are kept at the right temperature in safe storage units that are also clearly labeled. Software is also used to quickly locate stem cells, so they can be retrieved quickly if need be.
Share