Since the news appeared in the media about sending the mother cells of Infanta Leonor to the United States, the Ministry of Health is preparing regulations to regulate umbilical cord banks.
A Royal Decree will clearly regulate umbilical cord donations in Spain, these must be altruistic, and may not be addressed to a specific person. In addition, the donation of the umbilical cord will be enhanced so that mothers who want to store them in a special public bank for this purpose.
In this way it will be achieved that people who can suffer from a congenital disease or bone marrow, can be treated properly and thus save many more lives than are currently saved. Umbilical cord blood contains cells that can be used to be transplanted in patients even if they have no kinship. These donations are a great help to fight immunodeficiencies or the fearsome acute leukemia.
Solidarity is very important, many lives can be saved thanks to cord donation, the more donations there are, the more chances of finding the most appropriate cells to treat a certain disease.
Regarding the issue of private umbilical cord banks, some doctors raise doubts to consider. They explain that at present there is no scientific basis to assure any person of these supposed benefits of their own cord, since childhood diseases cannot receive their own cells from a genetic component. The risk is added, they say, since these private entities can dispose of the genetic information of thousands of people without knowing for sure how they can use this information.
It is no use getting rid of the cord, but a donation is a great solution, it can save a life.
