Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/244624
10 News maltatoday, SUNDAY, 19 JANUARY 2014 Claims of cord blood storage may be just speculative Banking new-borns' cord blood could treat rare childhood tumours but not diseases developed after 25 years of age TIM ATTARD MONTALTO A senior lecturer at the University of Malta and blood cell expert, Dr Pierre Schembri Wismayer, has criticised what he described as the 'inflated claims' that private companies use to promote cord blood banking for new-borns. Cord blood banking is the extraction of blood from the umbilical cord, to be frozen with the intention of using stem cell research to cure future illnesses in the child. Schembri Wismayer, a PhD in molecular oncology from the Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, has spent a career researching stem cells, differentiation and cancer, and while pointing out that public cord blood banking was "recommendable", he does not quite share the same sentiment when the banking of cord blood becomes privatised. Writing in the University of Malta's research magazine Think, Schembri Wismayer said transplants from a child's own stem cells are useful in rare childhood tumours but companies store cord blood for 25 years, before the onset of adult diseases like Alzheimer's or diabetes Contacted by MaltaToday, Schembri Wismayer reiterated this stance, claiming that respected entities such as the American Association of Pediatricians and the British Association of Gynaecology also do not recommend private cord blood storing. Cord blood can be used to cure several inherited diseases such as thalassaemia and certain types of cancer such as leukaemia, but Schembri Wismayer cites official estimates showing 'only one in 50,000 children' will actually use privately-banked cord blood. "One reason for this is because private companies only promise to store the cord blood for 25 years, which means that when diseases such as heart attacks, diabetes, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's crop up – diseases which tend to affect us well beyond the age of 25 – the cord blood will long have been dis- Pierre Schembri Wismayer: "Blood banking is either for children or rather petite people" posed of," he said. "For some extra money, you can bank it for longer but no one has ever stored it for such lengths. We don't even know if it would survive and still be useful," he said. Schembri Wismayer said that while it was true that cord blood could treat diabetes, the private banks failed to specify which type of diabetes this was. "Cord blood could help treat diabetes Type I, but it is the Type II that is very common in Malta and not the Type I," he said, adding that even in the first instance, a very long and expensive procedure, referred to as stem cell treatment, was required. "Stem cell treatment is still a very rare occurrence, and not only in Malta. In fact, the first two cases where stem cell treatment was carried out was only last year," he said. Schembri Wismayer also said that the amount of stem cells in a new-born's umbilical cord was only enough to restore the bone marrow of a 50kg person. "Banking is either for children or rather petite people," he said, stressing that while research has been carried out to increase such stem cells, none were close to actually being used. He did admit, however, that it may prove viable for families likely to develop such diseases, as well as for parents of non-European origin. In the latter's case, difficulties could arise when trying to find matching units at European cord banks. Schembri Wismayer was part of a team of doctors who drafted a proposal 15 years ago to set up a public cord blood extraction service. "The government at the time deemed it PL executive to approve Joseph Cuschieri's EP candidature MIRIAM DALLI AFTER testing the waters and facing the Socialists' group ahead of the European Parliament's vote on the citizenship resolution, Labour's head of delegation Joseph Cuschieri informed the party he wanted to run for the European Parliament elections again. Speculation ran wild over the past few weeks on whether Cuschieri would be on Labour's list of candidates for the May European elections, especially after Labour's executive this week confirmed former ONE journalist Charlon Gouder and incumbent Marlene Mizzi as candidates. Party insiders told MaltaToday that Cuschieri had been uncertain whether to contest again, primarily concerned by Joseph Cuschieri the candidature of former prime minister Alfred Sant and former ONE journalist Miriam Dalli. "Both Sant and Dalli have a good chance of being elected. As the head of delegation, Cuschieri expected to have a bigger push from the party although the party always wanted him to run. He is our head of delegation after all," the sources said. One source claimed that Cuschieri kept his cards to his chest until he could gauge the party's reaction. "There never were any doubts the executive would approve his candidature," another source said. According to the sources, Cuschieri made up his mind after his "very active participation" in the European Parliament for the removal of any direct reference to Malta in the cross-party joint resolution on 'EU Citizenship for Sale'. Cuschieri, together with Mizzi, lobbied long and hard within the Socialist Group, home to the four Labour Maltese MEPs in the European Parliament. "He worked relentlessly to obtain the S&D's support and the group in fact pushed amendments to remove any reference to Malta from the resolution. This week's experience convinced him to run again," the sources said. Most probably, Labour's full list will be finalised with Cuschieri's candidature. The other approved candidates are MP Deborah Schembri, Cyrus Engerer, Peter Cordina, Lino Bianco, Ivan Grixti, Clint Camilleri, Mario Farrugia Borg and Fleur Vella. Cuschieri, Sant, Dalli, Engerer and Mizzi are considered to be among the favourite top five. to be too expensive… in future, science will make it possible to take an adult's cell and transform it into a stem cell. This, essentially, would mean that this service could become available to everyone," he said. tattardmontalto@mediatoday.com.mt Proposed Gzira lido may limit public access to coastline JAMES DEBONO THE Malta Environment and Planning Authority's environment protection directorate is not objecting to the development of a lido on reclaimed land on the Gzira coastline, as long as the public is given access to the seaward edge of the development. The project envisions the development of a swimming pool and other facilities on reclaimed land adjacent to the present promenade, which will remain public. But while presently people can walk along the coast, looking directly at the sea between Gzira and Manoel Island, as proposed the area immediately adjacent to the sea will be occupied by private facilities. According to the EPD, this negative impact can be offset by providing adequate pedestrian ac- cess along the seaward edge of the proposed reclaimed coast. The EPD says that this project is limited to the development of an average-sized lido with ancillary facilities, including public areas. The whole site, including the proposed public space, is situated on land reclaimed from the sea alongside an already-existing artificially engineered coast bounded by a low seawall. The project will have an ecological impact on Cladocora caespitosa (stony coral) colonies growing within the site footprint and on the artificial quay wall, which will be affected. The EPD is proposing the supervised relocation of the coral to another spot within Id-Daħla ta' Tas-Sliema. The major social impacts of the project include the displacement of boat berthing spaces and the restriction of public access along Artist's impression of the proposed Gzira lido the coast. While noting that the project does provide public access along the coastline, this is largely provided through narrow service access and stops short of retaining the current availability for public pedestrian use. The developers are expected to address the displacement of existing boat-to-shore berths, whereas the displacement of other (boat-to-buoy) berthing would require relocation to a site in the immediate vicinity within the same creek. The EPD concluded that provided that these safeguards are duly taken on board, the project is not objectionable. But the EPD warned that MEPA must ensure that the current ad hoc proposal does not open the floodgates for similar developments along the Gzira/Sliema strand in the absence of a holistic plan for the area.