Cord Blood Transplantation - A Life Savior Technique

The cord Blood which was discarded soon after the birth of a baby is regarded as a life saving device for the future generations of a family. It has thereby become imperative to save the precious blood which is rich in stem cells necessary for the treatment of several life threatening diseases. In the past ten years, several cord blood transplantations have been performed worldwide as an alternative for treating cancer and serious genetic disorders. The first cord blood transplant was done in 1988

There are various sources of retreiving stem cells and Umbilical cord blood is one of the three sources for obtaining the blood-forming cells used in transplants. The other two sources are bone marrow and peripheral (circulating) blood. It is collected at the time of delivery after the birth of the baby. The blood from the cord is collected carefully by the hospital staff who are trained in the service. It is then tested, frozen and stored at a cord blood bank for future use. The stored blood is called a cord blood unit (cbu).

The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) Registry includes more than 70,000 cbu. Doctors search the NMDP Registry of adult marrow or peripheral blood cell donors and cbus to find a suitable HLA match for their patients who need a transplant. If selected, the matching blood is transfused to a patient. The transplant process is the same as for marrow and peripheral blood cell transplants

The use of cord blood transplants has grown for both children and adults. It is used more often in children because an umbilical cord holds a limited amount of blood. The number of blood-forming cells in a transplant should match the size of the patient - usually younger patients need fewer cells and older patients need more cells. Some cbus may not have enough blood-forming cells for some patients.

Doctors are trying different ways to increase the number of cells in a cbu so they can use cord blood for larger patients. One method being studied is to give a patient two units. Another method being studied is to grow the number of cells in a in a laboratory before giving it to the patient.

When your doctor searches the NMDP Registry, he or she will choose the best cell source for you. That may be marrow or peripheral blood from an adult donor or it may be a cb unit. A doctor might choose cord blood because of some of the ways it differs from marrow or peripheral blood.

A close match between the patient and the donor or cbu can improve a patient's outcome after transplant. Even though a closely matched one is always preferred, clinical studies suggest the match may not have to be as close as is needed for marrow or peripheral blood transplants. It can take two months or more to find an unrelated marrow or peripheral blood donor. A unit can be selected and delivered to the transplant center in less than two weeks. Your doctor may choose cord blood if you need a transplant quickly.

However there are chances that your doctor might not approve of Cord blood transplantation. The possible reasons for this are:

• There may not be enough blood-forming cells in a unit for the size of the patient.

• It usually takes longer for cord blood cells to engraft (begin to grow and create new blood cells and an immune system). Until the cells engraft, the patient is at a high risk for infection.

• Patients cannot get backup cells from the same cbu. If a patient's transplanted marrow or peripheral blood cells do not engraft or the patient relapses, the patient may be able to get a second donation from the same adult donor. After a transplant, this option is not available. However, doctors may be able to use a different unit or a backup adult donor instead.

Cord blood transplants also have all the same risks as marrow and peripheral blood transplants. The risk of infection may be higher after a cord blood transplant because of the longer time to engraft.

If you have questions about whether a cord blood transplant is right for you, talk with your doctor. Every patient's situation is different. Your transplant doctor knows your situation and can help you make choices about your treatment.

cord blood plays a vital role in the treatment of life-threatening blood diseases. In such a case cord blood transplant may be an option.

What Are the Side Effects of Gabapentin

Gabapentin (also known by the brand name Neurontin) is a prescription drug originally approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1994 to help people suffering from epilepsy to better handle mild seizures. Since that time, it has been commonly used to treat neuropathic pain. This type of pain mainly effects the nervous system. It has also been used to a limited degree to treat bipolar disorder, migraine prevention, and some severe forms of medication-resistant depression. But with the various uses for treatment, one needs to ask the question: what are the side effects of gabapentin?

One common side effect of gabapentin of dizziness. This tends to occur in the beginning of treatment, but usually lessens as your body becomes more accustomed to the medication. Another typical complaint of Neurontin users is extreme drowsiness. Until you are aware of just how drowsy the prescription will be, its best to avoid operating motor vehicles and heavy machinery.

Another side effect commonly reported by Neurontin users is peripheral edema. This is an uncomfortable condition where the hands and feet become swollen. If this becomes painful, or doesn't go away after a few weeks of starting the gabapentin treatment, a doctor should be seen immediately.

There has been a few preliminary studies on rats in which subjects developed carcinomas. Although these carcinomas did not adversely effect the lifespan of the rats, more testing is necessary.

If you suffer from some form of neuropathic pain and would like to explore this treatment further, it is highly recommended that you talk to your physician and learn more details on what the side effect of gabapentin (Neurontin) are. Living with pain can be a miserable experience. For many individuals, gabapentin has offered them some much needed relief.

Want to learn more about the side effects of gabapentin?

Visit my blog at http://GabapentinFacts.blogspot.com to get more information on gabapentin (Neurontin). Although it does offer pain relief for some, its treatment must be thorough researched, as well as discussed with a doctor. Start learning about it today!

This article can be reprinted by newsletter/ezine owners and webmasters as long as the links are kept active and none of the content is altered.

A Special Kind of Medicine

Almost a decade ago, I had a negative experience with cosmetic facial surgery. I was left with serious functional disorders which have progressed to a frightening degree. I will not go into the clinical details, for that is not the purpose of this article. However, to clarify what follows, it is fair to say that I was blacklisted as a patient by the most competent surgeons here in the US after going public with my story. There were a few truly compassionate doctors who tried their best to help me, but not being plastic surgeons themselves, their hands were tied to a great extent.

One of these doctors is my primary care physician. She is from India, and I could not hope for a more highly skilled, kind and compassionate doctor. I had the good fortune to become her patient when she first arrived on Cape Cod, as patients gravitated to her practice like bees to blossoms. As her patients became numerous, she was forced to refer newcomers to her colleagues. As my primary care physician, my situation has been deeply frustrating to us both, as she does everything within her realm of specialty to see that I receive every possible diagnostic that might help a surgeon work out a method of corrective surgery that may improve breathing, swallowing, and jaw closure which were impaired by my face-lift operation. However, in today's medical system, particularly in the realm of cosmetic plastic surgery where surgeons' egos tend to expand to phenomenal proportions and practitioners remain behind the 'White Wall of Silence', those with iatrogenic injuries often become the untouchables of the patient population, and are left unable to find a surgeon willing to treat them.

As my condition essentially disabled me to the point where surviving every 24 hours has become a toss of fate and I struggle to accomplish the most basic tasks to maintain independence, I literally begged a highly skillful, good hearted surgeon to see me. This required months of e-mail communication, and I am certain he agreed to help me against the judgment of his colleagues, who warned him against any involvement with my case.

After an appointment date was set, I was scheduled to see my primary care physician. I felt very hopeful on this day. My heart felt lighter than it had for years, and I looked forward to telling my doctor about this long awaited breakthrough. This was the first glimmer of hope in years of an otherwise gloomy state of existence. I am rarely able to leave my flat these days, and my monthly visit to my doctor is understandably frustrating for us both as my condition worsens with no available help in sight. I am acutely aware that my situation has made my doctor feel helpless, and my heart aches for her because she is so sensitively attuned to her patients' needs.

On this day, however, I knew our visit would be brighter than she could know. I decided to mark the occasion by wearing a lovely muted gray-green sari in honor of her homeland, India, a country I have always longed to see. I usually dress very simply and plainly these days, as adornment is low on the list of priorities when managing to do needful things requires all the energy I can muster. But this was a day worthy of a special effort. As I draped my sari that morning, I worried, just for a moment, that it would not be done properly to her eyes! However, I am used to wearing a sari, which I believe is the perfect garment for every woman, versatile as well as beautiful and suitable for every occasion. My doctor's eyes lit up when I walked into her examining room in my sari. When I told her about the appointment with the surgeon, the room filled with hope.. my hope of possibly being restored to live a normal life, and her hope for my well being.

She then began the practical part of her exemplary doctoring and gently but firmly reminded me of the risks of surgery and the possibility that things might get worse. She wanted me to think about this decision very carefully. We discussed the status of my health, and she again expressed her happiness about my upcoming appointment with the surgeon.

Then she said something that will stay with me forever. My heart fills with great emotion and my eyes fill with tears as I recall this moment. She pressed her hands together in Namaste and said "I will pray for you". I do not know if this beautiful expression of faith and hope is often spoken by Indian doctors to their patients, but this is the first time a doctor ever said these words to me. I was overwhelmed with her heartfelt expression. Her words and compassion went straight from her heart to mine and will remain with me always. I have had the good fortune to be a patient of doctors who expressed true compassion and a deep desire for my well being, but never has a doctor said they would pray for me, though I believe some of them have done so. Hearing these words spoken with such openness and sincerity is truly a very special kind of medicine. Prayer...A treatment to last a lifetime.

On my way out of her office she turned to me and said "Thank you for wearing the sari". I left there with my heart so full! I said my own prayer then, for my exceptional doctor's life to be filled with blessings always.

Lucille Iacovelli, featured in HBO's documentary 'Plastic Disasters', was forced to retire as a professional gardener after debilitating injury from cosmetic face lift surgery.

A Master Gardener, naturalist and environmentalist, her interests include biodiversity, medical ethics, birdwatching, foraging wild edible plants, and cooking. She blogs about the dangers of cosmetic surgery at http://cosmeticsurgeryuglyside.blogspot.com/ and about her life on Cape Cod at http://lucilleiacovelli.blogspot.com/ where she lives with her rescued cocker spaniel, Sierra.