Mother freezes baby's 'life-saving' umbilical cord

A mother who has frozen her newborn baby's umbilical cord as a health precaution today heralded the move as a "potential life-saver".

Paula Aspinall, 34, of Northwich, Cheshire, and her partner, Peter, paid up to £2,000 for the unique insurance policy for themselves, baby Daniel and his three-year-old sister Megan.

Samples of tissue and blood from the cord will be stored cryogenically for 20 years with the potential to use the cord's stem cells if any of the family fall seriously ill over the period.

Stored cord blood stem cells already help treat more than 85 different medical conditions of the blood and immune system but experts are hopeful that umbilical tissue has far greater potential in the field of regenerative medicine.

Research has shown they could repair damaged bone, cartilage, tendons and muscles, and combat nerve damage and chronic flammation.

The Aspinalls are thought to be the first family in the UK to freeze and store the cord in this way.

The tissue was collected immediately after the birth at the Private Birth Centre in Northwich and taken to be stored at Nottingham-based Future Health Technologies Ltd, which already holds thousands of cord blood samples given from around the world.

The stored cord tissue cells are not only a 100 per cent match for Daniel but also a close match for sister Megan and should also be able to be used for his parents.

Mrs Aspinall, who works as an office manager at the Private Birth Centre, wants more pregnant women to be made aware of the potential value of umbilical cord tissue.

She said: "Having read as much as I could about cord blood and thought through all the pros and cons, I really felt it was something we should do as we hadn't had the opportunity with our first child.

"I think it is a waste that the cord is routinely thrown away. I know the chances of needing this sample are very slim and I genuinely hope we never have to use it.

"But the umbilical cord helps give life right from the start so why not make it a potential life-saver for the future."

Professor Judith Hoyland, Research Group Leader for Tissue Injury and Repair at Manchester University's School of Clinical and Laboratory Studies, said: "The area of regenerative medicine is hugely exciting and no longer in the sphere of science fiction.

"Pre-clinical studies in the treatment of conditions such as complex bone fractures and cartilage repair using cord tissue stem cells are well advanced. Human clinical trials are next on the agenda and should be happening within 10 years."