How umbilical cords can save lives of cancer patients

Do you know what happens to the placenta after birth? In most cases, it is discarded together with the umbilical cord. It is considered biological waste. But in some developed countries such as France and the US, mothers can choose to donate their baby’s placenta to a tissue bank.

Others might also opt to have some blood, known as cord blood — extracted from the cord — and store it in a blood bank. “Unlike other blood, cord blood has high concentration of blood components. It also contains stem cells that have the potential to differentiate into any types of cells,” explains Dr Sikolia Wanyonyi, a Foetal Medicine Specialist at Aga Khan University Hospital.