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Stem Cell Banking: Risks and Realities

Private stem cell banks in India are aggressively marketing and selling stem cell storage services for unproven future treatments, even as the science is still evolving. These banks charge high fees of around Rs. 50,000 to store cells like dental pulp and menstrual blood for 20 years, but there is no guarantee the stored cells will be useful if medical advances make the storage redundant or develop new treatments. The director of the Indian Council of Medical Research warns that most stem cell therapies are still experimental and that these banks are selling hope based on unestablished science. He advises people to think carefully before banking their cells, and to ensure banks obtain proper approvals and provide informed consent about the current limits of the technology.

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Alex Fierăscu
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101 views2 pages

Stem Cell Banking: Risks and Realities

Private stem cell banks in India are aggressively marketing and selling stem cell storage services for unproven future treatments, even as the science is still evolving. These banks charge high fees of around Rs. 50,000 to store cells like dental pulp and menstrual blood for 20 years, but there is no guarantee the stored cells will be useful if medical advances make the storage redundant or develop new treatments. The director of the Indian Council of Medical Research warns that most stem cell therapies are still experimental and that these banks are selling hope based on unestablished science. He advises people to think carefully before banking their cells, and to ensure banks obtain proper approvals and provide informed consent about the current limits of the technology.

Uploaded by

Alex Fierăscu
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

12/27/2014

[Link]|FutureShocked

Society

MAGAZINE|DEC06,2010

MEDICINE:BANKING

FutureShocked
Cellbankingonlyagoodbusinessidea?
DEBARSHIDASGUPTA

uttingprofitwayaheadofscience,privatebanking(orlongtermstorage)ofnewstemcellsourceshas

[Link]
firms(StemadeandDhruvPolyclinic,bothMumbaibased)haveinthelastfewmonthslaunchedbanking
servicesformilkteeth,[Link],ontheother
hand,[Link]
whentheIndianCouncilofMedicalResearch(ICMR)stillconsidersallstemcellrelatedtherapiesexcept
bonemarrowtransplants,andthatforcertainacceptedindicationsasexperimental.
MayurAbhaya,CEOofLifecell,[Link]
bloodarebeingtestedonarangeofdisorderslikearthritis,diabetes,heartfailure,spinalcordinjuriesand
Parkinsons,[Link],hesays.
ItisthiscriticaluncertaintythatgetsneatlyobfuscatedintheslickpromosfeaturingactorHrithikRoshanand
attractivepackagesthatsellamonthlymiraclewithhighpotentialandpromisetotreatmanyserious
ailments.Lifecellhopestohavesome3,000customersforitsmenstrualbloodbankingservicewithinayear.
Itscordbloodbankingservicealreadyhas30,[Link],DhruvPolyclinicsellsitsschemefor
storingstemcellsfromdentalpulpastheultimateprotection,whileStemadeoffersthepotentialtoshield
fromcriticalhealthconcerns.

[Link]

1/3

12/27/2014

[Link]|FutureShocked

TheDelhibasedStemCellGlobalFoundationexpectsIndiasstemcellbankingbusinesstogrowat35per
centoverthenextyeartotouchRs140crore.ItcostsaboutRs50,000atminimumforthecellstobe
isolatedandstoredforsome20yearsandtheresnoguarantee,orrefund,[Link]
logic:[Link],therearesomanywomenwhohaveannualgymsubscriptions
[Link],atleastyouhavetheoptionofusingit.

Cellbanksare
chargingpeople
heftilytostorebody
partsforafuture
thataimstomake
suchstorage
redundant.

Againstthatspiel,[Link],thedirector
generalofICMR,[Link],hedeniedknowledgeofbanks
[Link]
storingmenstrualbloodanddentalpulpweresellinghopebasedon
unestablishedscience,hesays,Ifitisso,[Link],thesetwo
[Link]
itsUSfacilityStemadeborrowsLifecellsfacilityinChennai.

KatochalsosaysbanksinIndiahavetobeauthorisedbytheDrugController
GeneralofIndiaandanynewstemcelltherapywillhavetoundergotrialsafter
[Link]
CommitteeforStemCellResearchandTherapy(NACSCRT)toserveasaregistryofalltrialsofnewerstem
celltherapies.

[Link]
isonlyasmallchanceonein1,000toonein200,000thatachildwithoutanyknowndiseaseriskmight
[Link],scientificleapscouldmakebankingredundant:anycellmay
[Link],let
themknowthepresentstatusoftheunproventechnologyandnotmakefalsepromises,[Link]
carefullythen,beforebankingpartofyou.
Clickheretoseethearticleinitsstandardwebformat

[Link]

2/3

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