Stem Cell Banking Spreading
Interesting news via Bioresearch Online: "NeoStem, a company specializing in adult stem cell collection and banking services for long-term storage for therapeutic uses, has opened the first walk-in, adult stem cell collection and storage center in the US. ... NeoStem provides its patients with adult stem cell collection and banking services via a two step process. The first step is the mobilization, wherein a patient receives injections of a medicine that temporarily allows stem cells to move from a person's bone marrow into the peripheral blood. The second phase is called apheresis, a painless and safe procedure (similar to donating blood) which separates and collects the stem cells from the blood." The open question here is whether this is worth it: what sort of insurance is really provided here? If you believe that the biotechnology revolution will continue unabated, it would seem likely that the medical technicians of 2037 will not need younger frozen cells as an aid to repairing your body. But who can say for sure? At some point the price will be low enough for everyone to hedge their bets at a comfortable cost.