The Importance of Stem Cells in Cancer Treatment

Many parents opt for the cryopreservation of their children’s stem cells in hope that, one day if necessary, they will have access to samples for the treatment of hematopoietic diseases and for use in various purposes in Regenerative Medicine.

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Stem cells present in blood and umbilical cord tissue are essentially multi-potent, mesodermal tissues and hematopoietic stem cells, respectively. They are currently considered safe cells with great NSI stem cell treatment potential and therefore important in the development of cell therapies. Mesenchymal and Hematopoietic stem cells are cell therapies that do not present the danger of tumor (mixture of tissues) often associated with the use of embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells. Also noteworthy were the serious ethical and religious barriers associated with the collection and isolation of embryonic stem cells, which led to the search for other alternatives in NSI stem cell therapies.

The risk of developing neo-plastic alterations always exists in all cells of our body, especially in those that have a greater capacity for multiplication, such as the precursor cells of the blood cells present in the bone marrow, the precursor cells of the gametes located in the testis or even the Mucosal cells that are in constant renewal, such as the gastric mucosa. At some point, due to various endogenous (e.g. aging) or exogenous causes (such as exposure to radiation, certain drugs or viruses), these cells can alter their DNA and originate neo-plastic cells. The same can happen at the level of adult stem cells present in these tissues in all individuals and that are responsible for their regeneration rate and daily cell turnover.

At present research, some efforts have been made in the development of preclinical and clinical trials for the study of the therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stem cells present in adipose tissue, umbilical cord and bone marrow blood and tissue for the treatment of cancer.