Father pays for milk tooth to be frozen

25/02/2016

A father from Devon made the decision to have his daughter’s milk tooth frozen ten years ago in order to preserve the stem cells. He hopes that by taking this action, it may one day save her life.

Laurence Delamar has paid almost £1,000 over a period of ten years in order to have the milk tooth stored at -195 C. He believes that this step is a “good medical insurance policy” for his daughter. Stem cells that are removed from baby teeth, such as in this case, will have been able to evade deterioration due to age or pollutants. The only painless and non-invasive way to harvest stem cells is from naturally shed teeth.

Research into stem cell therapy has shown potential cures for both blindness and diabetes, as well as other debilitating conditions. More recently, there have been trials into stem cell therapies for multiple sclerosis and cartilage injuries. If stem cells are to be used in treatment, they should be a perfect match. This way, the recipient can avoid having to take anti-rejection drugs for the rest of their life.

The reason for continued research into stem cells is due to the fact that they have the ability to turn into many different forms of cell. Delamar said: “Who knows when you will use this facility and medical science has obviously progressed so much since 2006.”

Delamar said that family and friends may have questioned his actions at first, but they can now see the benefits due to continued developments within this area of research.

Scientists believe that stem cells may eventually be of vital importance in treating conditions such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, burns and spinal cord damage.