October 5th is Stem Cell Awareness Day!

At 9:50 am by Lisa - Category: Did You Hear?

For the millions of people around the world who suffer from incurable diseases and injury,Stem Cell Awareness Day is a day to celebrate the scientific advances made to-date and be hopeful of what is yet to come, according to the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) . And we’d have to say, we agree.

Stem cells from umbilical cord blood have been used in nearly 20,000 transplants worldwide during the last 20 years to help treat nearly 80 diseases.  And clinical trials, in the area of regenerative medicine, are now being conducted to determine whether a child’s own cord blood stem cells may be used to treat cerebral palsy and Type 1 Diabetes.  Read more about the trials in aprevious blog post.

Despite all the great news about cord blood stem cells and the hope that they provide for the future, there still exists a critical education gap. According to a study published in the Journal of Reproductive Medicine  nearly 75% of expectant mothers in the study considered themselves “minimally informed” when it comes to cord blood banking.

To help address the significant education gap, the Parent’s Guide to Cord Blood Foundation , a comprehensive resource for expectant parents about cord blood medical research and cord blood storage options, has released a new educational brochure for expectant parents.

The brochure can be downloaded at no cost from the foundation’s home page and has been translated into several languages, including Spanish, German, Italian, Greek, and Hebrew, with more translations in progress.

In honor of Stem Cell Awareness Day, we hope you’ll take a moment to help spread the word about cord blood banking and about ViaCord!  Here are a couple of ways you can help raise awareness:

1. Come join the over 25,000 ViaCord fans on Facebook . You can connect with other ViaCord  families and individuals that support cord blood banking.
2. Tell expecting friends about the importance of cord blood stem cells and the benefits of preserving them. The impact of sharing your knowledge you may be greater than you think.
3. Email your friends a link where they can download a free information kit from ViaCord and learn more!

And be sure to tell us in the comments section of other ways you help raise awareness!!