I have already preserved my child's stem cells with LifeCell. Why should I upgrade to BabyCord Share?
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While you have preserved your baby's stem cells at birth for protection against medical conditions, there could be times when matching stem cells from a healthy donor are required for the treatment of certain genetic conditions such as Thalassemia or aggressive cancers such as Leukemia.
The biggest challenge is finding matching stem cells from donors, since India has a available base of only 5000 stem cell units from donors at public banks. Moreover even if a matching units are found they are available at a huge cost of Rs.15 - 20 lakhs per unit making is unaffordable for many.
As per an Indian Council of Medical Research report India needs to have a pool of 250,000 preserved stem cell units to provide a high probability (>90%) chance of finding a match.
By upgrading to BabyCord Share, you can enjoy access to the largest inventory of stem cells of Indian origin from LifeCell, thereby increasing the possibility of finding matching stem cells not just the baby but also for any of the family members (siblings, parents and grandparents too) during the time of need and that too at no additional cost.
In the initial two years of the baby's life, the sample is reserved for own use. This is to ensure that there is no need to access alternate sources of stem cells in the body for treatment of conditions such as neuroblastoma, cerebral palsy, autism. If such need is felt, the sample can be reserved for exclusive use. However, if the baby's development shows that there no need for such treatments, the sample gets listed on the registry.
What happens when my child requires its own stem cells for a treatment and it it is already released to another community member?
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There is no risk involved in sharing stem cells, as our bodies always make stem cells which are mostly concentrated in the bone marrow. Hence, even if the preserved cord blood is unavailable since it is released to another member of the community, the bone marrow can be tapped to access stem cells. For instance, actor, model and cancer graduate Ms Lisa Ray had used her own bone marrow stem cells & was successfully treated for Multiple Myeloma.
Hence by sharing the preserved stem cells in the community you lose nothing but have the upside of being covering against all conditions that are treatable by stem cells including the ones that require stem cells from donors.
Also, the chances of your baby's own umbilical cord stem cells being released to another community member is very low (<10%) and in all probability you may be able to access your own baby's cord blood stem cells if available.
If my child's stem cells are released to someone else will my child continue to have access to stem cells from the community pool?
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Yes. Not only your baby but your family will also continue to have access to community donor stem cells during the duration of the contract with unlimited access to matching stem cell units.
If I have already utilised stem cells for any of the family members from the community stem cell bank, how can my baby continue to stay protected.
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Community stem cell banking provides you unlimited access to donor stem cells either for the same person or multiple persons from the family. Hence your baby will continue to stay protected.
How much should I pay towards cost of matching stem cells from the community bank when I retrieve for a transplant?
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As a community member, you will have unlimited free access to matching stem cells from the community stem cell bank for the child, siblings, parents and grandparents and there are no additional payment towards cost of stem cells. All you need to do is upgrade to Community Stem cell banking by making the initial upgrade payment.
How much should I pay to upgrade to BabyCord Share?
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Upgrading to BabyCord Share is simple and affordable. You need to pay just Rs.5,000 to upgrade and extend the protection of stem cells for your family and also enhance the protection for your child against conditions that require donor stem cells for treatments.
Upgrade process is simple and in 3 steps.
- Provide your consent to upgrade to BabyCord Share
- Accept the terms & conditions and agree to the modified client agreement
- Make payment through online using a payment mode of your choice - net banking, credit card, debit card, payment wallets.
In case you wish to make payment through cheque please do connect with us and we shall guide you accordingly.
We hope, we have been able to address all your questions and you are now ready to upgrade to BabyCord Share. In case you have any specific queries, please do connect with us at 9028486464 and we shall be pleased to assist you.
Can the special Upgrade fee be paid with cash?
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No, Cash payments are strictly not accepted. Please note that paying by cash will not process your upgrade request.
