The Promise of A Booming Stem Cell Therapy Market By 2020

14/06/2016

Even though stem cell treatments are yet to make it into the mainstream, forecasts for their growth are promising the market to explode over the next five to ten years.

And today the market isn’t exactly small. Researchers around the world are using stem cells to drive breakthroughs in medicine every week—many of which have already lead to a significant number of stem cell products in important therapeutic areas, including knee cartilage repair and prostate cancer treatment.

In 2013, the global stem cell market size was valued at around $38 billion (£26.4 billion). Over the next five years, it is expected to nearly quadruple, reaching and surpassing $170 billion (£117.9 billion) by 2020.

This immense growth is thanks to major advancements and increasing investments in three main areas: research and development into chronic disease, stem cell treatments and therapies, and stem cell banking services.

The Era Of Off-The-Shelf Stem Cell Therapies

Stem cell therapy have frequently been in the headlines in recent years, with many discoveries and trials of new treatments demonstrating very promising results.

But, at least for now, the majority of these treatments and solely available on a per-patient basis—with the exception of stem cell therapy for diseases of the bone marrow which is already an established practice.

However, the era of off-the-shelf treatments is beginning to materialise, as treatments in some countries are finally advancing through human trials and into the hospital ward.

One area making huge progress is the generation of organs from stem cells. This technology is not only good for transplants and regenerating damaged tissue, but it can also help in modelling the development of diseases, and in toxicology and drug discovery studies.

A Convenient Way To Bank Your Stem Cells

Two major barriers which have slowed the progress of stem cell therapy over the past few years are the difficulty of extracting stem cells from patients, and the cost of storing or banking them.

Harvesting stem cells from bone marrow is an expensive procedure, just as storing stem cells from a baby’s umbilical cord blood can cost the family a pretty penny. But with the discovery of stem cells in teeth, an accessible and cost-effective source of stem cells is now available for use.

Normally, stem cells are found deep within tissue and are few in number. But our teeth are a rich source of stem cells which also, as every child loses their baby teeth, offer a completely non-invasive and fuss-free alternative to bone marrow and cord blood harvesting.

This makes the procedure of harvesting stem cells something that can be done away from the hospital, without expensive equipment, and without sucking up precious time of healthcare professionals.

Furthermore, having such a convenient way to store your own stem cells eliminates most, if not all, the risks posed by donor stem cells such as rejection and contracting infection or disease.

With accessing and banking your own stem cells being easier and cheaper than it has ever been, and research into treatment methods advancing at a staggering rate, it’s clear to see why experts are projecting huge growth in the field. The only question is, will you have your stem cells ready when you need them?

The future of stem cell banking is here. Visit our website and find out how we can help safeguard the health of your children by storing stem cells from milk teeth.