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Transporting Cord Blood

November 11, 2011 By admin

Transporting Cord Blood

In attempting to understand the subject of cord blood banking, it may be beneficial to think in familiar terms. Start with some common idea – banking. In the most basic sense, a bank is that location where value is held with the likelihood that at future access can allow use of the resource. Sounds simple, right?Transporting Cord Blood

Let’s continue our manner of keeping things simple when considering cord blood banking, because cord blood banking functions in much the same way. What’s different, perhaps, is the notion of storing the blood taken from an umbilical cord shortly after the birth of a newborn for the purpose of treating illnesses in the future.

Ask your obstratritian about cord blood banking donations and he or she will surely be able to provide some information and resources. The overall view is that cord blood banking is a very simple and effective way to help with the treatment of a number of diseases, some of them potentially devastating.

Cord blood banking saves valuable stem cells

The blood found in the umbilical cord is uniquely populated with stem cells which have been known to regenerate to help purify the blood system and rejuvenate the immune system. The stem cells saved through cord blood banking are sometimes used in the treatment of patients recovering from chemotherapy which tends to kill off virtually all the cells in the body.

Cord blood banking started in 1990 when doctors began gathering the blood from umbilical cords and cryogenically freezing the samples. A standard sample size is about 75 ml, or 1/3 of a cup, and contains millions of stem cells. The cryogenic process of cord blood banking essentially captures the vitality of the cells as it freezes them until a time in the future when this dynamic resource is needed again.

Stem cells also exist in bone marrow; but whereas the donor and recipient must be an exact marrow match, with cord blood banking the two patients must be only a half-match. This option dramatically increases successful stem cell transplants and has the benefit of lowering risk for the recipient. That’s why cord blood banking is seen as such an important investment in human health.

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A Brief History Of Cord Blood Banking

October 10, 2011 By admin

A Brief History Of Cord Blood Banking

Cord blood banking has a history that spans about twenty-five years. To date, about 8,000 people have benefited from medical therapies using stem cells of the umbilical cord blood. Today cord blood is used in medical therapies similar to the way stem cells from bone marrow are used. With cord blood banking, it is possible to use cord blood stem cells to re-populate a blood and immune system.History Of Cord Blood Banking

Stem cell transplants started in 1983 when the first proposal was made to use umbilical cord blood as an alternative source of stem cells. The first successful cord blood transplant took place in 1988. This transplant was conducted in Paris on a six year old boy who was suffering from a blood disorder, Fanconi’s Anemia. Stem cells from umbilical cord blood made it possible to regenerate his blood and immune cells in his body and thus cure him.

The option of private cord blood banking became available to the public in 1992 when the first private cord blood bank was established.  In 1993 the first cord blood transplant from a non-relative was conducted at Duke University. 1996 saw the development of the first US FDA Investigational New Drug for cord blood.

In 1997, as a result of cord blood banking technologies, it became possible to conduct a successful cord blood transplant on a 46 year old man suffering from chronic myelogenous leukemia.

The world’s first umbilical cord blood transplant was performed in 2000 with pre-implantation genetic testing for a perfect tissue match. A National Cord Blood Program was started in 2004. Illinois declared the right for women to opt for free cord blood banking in the year 2004

By 2005, the US Congress passed national cord blood legislation, UK researchers had discovered embryonic like stem cells in cord blood and more than 6,000 cord blood stem cell transplants were performed.

Filed Under: Cord Blood Banking

Look for accreditation when considering cord blood banking

September 12, 2011 By admin

Look for accreditation when considering cord blood banking.

Cord blood banking may be a life saving process when umbilical blood is collected and
stored for future purposes. Cord blood is rich with stem cells, that may prove to be
beneficial in treating more than 75 life threatening diseases. The collection process is
easy, painless and takes only a few minutes to store cord blood that is otherwise discarded as biological waste.Cord Blood Bank Accreditation

Cord blood banking has grown in popularity with the knowledge that stem cells are currently responsible for treating over 40 different diseases and disorders and may potentially create cures or ameliorations for diseases such as Type 1 diabetes, Cerebral Palsy and many other devastating ijuries.

Today, there are many private cord blood companies offering the service of collection, processing, testing and storage of umbilical cord blood. 

The internet and telephone conversations are useful resources in helping you choose the right cord blood bank, however it is important to select accredited companies and find out how long each cord blood laboratory has been operational. It is important to check the actual licenses and accreditations as many companies simply put FDA and other logos on their home page.  Experienced companies should have a good track record with banking cord blood and should possess at least an A rating with the BBB.

Financial stability and profitability of the company are two important factors in your
choice for the right cord blood bank. Remember that the company without financial
security will not be able to carry out cord blood banking securely and sustain its
maintenance and operation.

Also, determine how much experience the cord blood bank has company has in providing
samples for lifesaving medical transplants. Many cord blood banks, however, have not
provided a specimen for transplant purposes. Make comparisons among cord blood banks and find out the viability of thawed samples.

Next, consider where the company stores the cord blood stem cells. Some have storage
facilities near their corporate headquarters while others have labs in spots that are free
from natural disasters and the possibility of frequent airport closures. These safeguards
are important points to consider, especially if you live in a hurricane or earthquake prone
area. The final point to consider when choosing a cord blood bank is price.

Each cord blood banking company has a different rate for their service.  Some cord blood

banks offer a service for approximately $1,000, but that is generally for manual cord blood processing. Automated or closed bag processing systems are generally more expensive.  A person can expect to pay up to $2,000 for automated cord blood processing which research has shown recovers higher numbers of critical cells than manual processing.

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Eligibility Guidelines For Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

August 10, 2011 By admin

Eligibility Guidelines for Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

There is absolutely no pain or risk associated with collecting cord blood stem cells. This
procedure takes place immediately after the birth of the baby, and takes only a few minutes. When collecting cord blood stem cells, the medical team will simply clamp the umbilical cord after the removal of the baby, and begin the flow of umbilical cord blood into the collection system.Cord Blood Banking Guidelines

Collecting cord blood stem cells is an uncomplicated procedure as it takes place after
delivery. This is unlike the harvesting of stem cells from bone marrow which requires a
surgical procedure under anesthesia, is painful and invasive, and costly.

There are some eligibility guidelines that have to be met for collecting cord blood stem
cells. The donor must be 18 years or older, in good health and free from several infectious diseases as regulated by the FDA and CDC. For example, it is not recommended that a private bank accept a specimen from a mother who has a history of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis B or C, West Nile Virus or Chagas’ Disease. Public banks have additional requirements which include rejection of donations from those who have had tattoos in the past twelve months.

As long as the woman is in good health, and is living in a community where collecting
cord blood stem cells is available, it is possible to donate the baby’s cord blood. Mothers have to choose the participating cord blood bank and consult her doctor for guidance

After collecting cord blood stem cells, the cord blood is sent to the cord blood bank to be
stored for potential future use. It may even be possible to use a privately stored cord blood specimen for another family member. Statistics and research show that there is a 1 in 2 chance that the baby’s cord blood stem cells would be a match for the biological mother and father and a 1 in 4 chance of being a match for biological siblings.

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Methods Of Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

July 28, 2011 By admin

Methods of Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

Collecting cord blood stem cells is not at all harmful to the mother or the infant donor. Umbilical cord blood is collected immediately after delivery.  However, it is important to note, if there are any complications in delivery, there is a chance that your medical caregiver will be unable to collect a specimen of cord blood stem cells.Methods Of Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

When collecting cord blood stem cells, the umbilical cord is clamped after birth. This breaks the link between the baby and placenta. After this, the trained medical staff drains the cord blood from the placenta and umbilical cord. There are different ways for collecting cord blood stem cells, but all have the same purpose.

A needle is usually used for collecting cord blood stem cells into a blood bag, and this procedure takes approximately five minutes. Many companies have different methods of collecting cord blood.  Most companies today use the gravity bag collection system.  Some companies still use the syringe method and many public banks continue to use this method.  The collection style can also be determined based upon the type of delivery, vaginal delivery or cesarean section. Whichever the method, the mother’s cord blood is collected first using a venipuncture.

Colleting cord blood stem cells takes place after birth in both methods using a specific, pre-ordered kit from their chosen cord blood bank.  It is only after the baby is safely delivered that cord blood is collected.  The amount of blood collected during the procedure is essential as there is a direct correlation between the volume collected and the number of critical stem cells that can be recovered.

After the harvesting of cord blood stem cells, the blood is then shipped overnight taken to the cord blood bank. Research has shown that optimal cell levels can be recovered within 24-28 hours after the delivery of the baby.  It is here that the cord blood specimen should be processed, tested and cryogenically stored in quarantine until infectious disease test results received.  A cord blood company should be using a barcode system to avoid identification errors.  After this, when required, blood forming stem cells are thawed and used either in autologous or allogeneic procedures.

In autologous procedures, a person receives his or her own cord blood in a transplant, while in allogeneic procedures, a person receives cord blood that is donated from someone else like a sibling, close relative or someone anonymous. So, you can see that there are many benefits to collecting cord blood stem cells; this blood can save not only the donor, but also others from many life threatening diseases.

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Introduction To Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

June 8, 2011 By admin

An Introduction to Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

The practice of collecting cord blood stem cells as part of the birthing process is a procedure that has been in existence since the year 1988. During that year the first cord blood transplant was done, and since then, more than 8,000 transplants have taken place. Today, thousands of parents are using this once in a lifetime opportunity of collecting cord blood stem cells to be available later for possibly treating health problems.Introduction To Collecting Cord Blood Stem Cells

Not until 1995, however was collecting cord blood stem cells made widely available. The cord blood is collected immediately after birth of the baby once the umbilical cord has been cut. The medical caregiver normally collects the specimen.  This blood used to be discarded as medical waste.  The procedure of collecting cord blood stem cells does not in any way alter normal birth-related procedures. The efficiency of collecting a cord blood stem cell sample is dependant on the amount of cord blood that is collected. The larger the stem cell sample amount that is collected, the better its survival rate of cells in transplant. It is possible to choose the collection method for cord blood by either the syringe or gravity blood bag.

So far, more than 25,000 doctors have been collecting cord blood stem cells in more than 3,000 hospitals and birth centers in the US and more than 72 foreign countries. The practice is rapidly increasing and a growing number of doctors and hospitals are using the procedure of collecting cord blood stem cells with advanced training and technological resources.

It is important to note, however, that there is no risk to the child or the mother when collecting cord blood stem cells, as this is done after the baby is born and after the umbilical cord has been clamped and cut. This procedure is painless, safe and easy for both mother and baby, and there is no change whatever in the normal delivery process of the baby. The average amount of time required for collecting cord blood stem cells is about 5 minutes.

Once you have decided to collect and store your baby’s cord blood, a cord blood company must be chosen.  The cord blood company will be responsible for providing the cord blood collection kit, assisting you in arranging for delivery of the specimen to their laboratory, processing and testing the cord blood specimen and ultimately cryogenically storing the specimen for your family.

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The Value of Stem Cell Preservation

May 2, 2011 By admin

The Value of Stem Cell Preservation

If you’re an expectant mom, chances are you may have the opportunity to provide a truly valuable service to your family or to somebody else with real medical needs. The service is based on the practice of stem cell preservation. Stem cell preservation is a painless and effortless way to provide life giving cells to someone in need.Value Of Stem Cell Preservation

You see, at the time of birth, the umbilical cord connecting the mother and baby holds an incredible resource, cord blood carrying stem cells. These stem cells are extremely adaptable, and can be utilized in rebuilding an immune system or a blood system. As the baby is delivered and begins to take its own first breaths, that umbilical cord is severed and the practice of stem cell preservation can begin. Blood is drawn from the umbilical cord, and a short while later is treated under laboratory conditions to a state of deep freezing.

In considering the value of stem cell preservation, imagine the challenges of facing life-threatening diseases. Life suddenly becomes fragile for friends, family, loved ones.  A life threatening disease might sound a little like floating alone in the middle of a deep ocean. However, your life giving experience of becoming a mother can also be a life giving event for someone you may never meet.

Stem Cell Preservation – a Life Preserver

Now think of the relief, the joy, and the exhilaration of being tossed a medical life preserver.  As of 2006, over 8,000 people had received that life-preserver in the way of precious stem cells deriving from cord blood. Stem cell preservation (from cord blood and bone marrow) is proving to be a significant medical healing practice and is helping open doors for treating the likes of leukemia, lymphoma, breast cancer, and Hodgkin’s disease, to name just a few.

How do you think the recipient of a stem cell transplant feels about stem cell preservation? One simple word could characterize this feeling: thankful.

Expectant mothers have the unique privilege of donating umbilical cord blood and contributing to stem cell preservation. The process of stem cell preservation is simple, non-invasive, and free of charge. Please consult with your doctor or midwife before the 34th week of pregnancy. Your decision to look into stem cell preservation could be represent a life preserver to someone who could really use the help.

 

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Stem Cell Preservation Makes an Ideal Match

April 29, 2011 By admin

Stem Cell Preservation Makes an Ideal Match

Expectant mothers in the final few months of pregnancy, probably have heard, or even learned something about, stem cell preservation. Such preservation begins with the gathering of blood from the umbilical cord after your baby’s birth. Within thirty seconds of the baby’s arrival, one of the doctors or medical staff will cut the umbilical cord and draw about 1/3 of a cup of blood from the cord, and then secure it for transport to a nearby cord blood bank. This is the beginning of the process known as stem cell preservation.Stem Cell Preservation Makes Ideal Match

The preservation aspect of stem cell preservation is actually quite uncomplicated. It involves storage of the blood and cells in subzero temperatures known as cryogenic freezing. Of course, there is more to stem cell preservation. The samples go through a detailed labeling and identification process, as well as tests for any transmittable diseases. It’s interesting to note that the cryogenic process is so effective that even the oldest cells available (stem cell preservation from cord blood started in 1990) show limited deterioration as they are used today.

You might be wondering what happens when the cells are thawed and issued and just who qualifies to benefit from cord blood stem cell transplants.

Stem Cell Preservation and Tissue Compatibility

Donors are matched to recipients according to six proteins, called Human Leukocyte Antigens (HLA), that appear on the surface of white blood cells and other tissues in the body. These six HLA points determine tissue compatibility which leads us to one of the real benefits of cord blood stem cell preservation. As a minimum, only three of the six HLA points need to be a match for a successful transplant. This makes it easier, and less risky, in finding patients with compatible tissues.

The most likely recipients of treatment from stem cell preservation will be those coming out of chemotherapy or radiation therapy; where the healing process starts by eliminating all the cells in the body. Stem cell preservation maintains cells that are highly adaptable and can be used with patients suffering from a number of diseases among them leukemia, different forms of cancer, and Hodgkin’s disease.

From Stem Cell Preservation to Treatment

The new cells supplied by stem cell preservation enter the body through a tube or central line that goes into a vein in the patient’s chest. The transplanted cells move into the spaces inside the bones where they create new marrow. They grow and make healthy new red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Isn’t that miraculous? The human body certainly is a healing marvel, and modern medicine continues to make vital strides in treating even the most challenging diseases.

At the center of this remarkable healing process is stem cell preservation.

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The Five Basics of Cord Blood Storage

March 21, 2011 By admin

The Five Basics of Cord Blood Storage

Five Basics of Cord Blood Storage

Who participates in cord blood storage?

Expectant mothers can get the administrative wheels turning and inquire about cord blood storage. Just ask your physician or midwife. They will surely have some information or links to resources.

What is cord blood storage?

Cord blood storage captures about 1/3 of a cup of the blood from the umbilical cord at the time of a newborn’s delivery. Cord blood contains a very high density of stem cells (70 million in the standard sample size) that can later be used to treat blood and immune system related genetic diseases, cancers and blood disorders. Cord blood storage is the deep-freezing of the cord blood sample in a cryogenic state. The life of the cells is literally frozen, until brought out of that state.

When is cord blood storage done?

The process of cord blood storage starts just after the birth of a newborn when the umbilical cord is clamped and cut. Blood is drawn from the cord and stored in a sterile environment until it can be transferred to a cord blood storage facility. Reinvigorating the cells after preservation does not appear to have any limits. The earliest harvested cells in cord blood storage are over 15 years old now and show no signs of deterioration.

Where does cord blood storage occur?

The umbilical cord is taken at the time of a newborn’s delivery immediately in the delivery room. Cord blood storage takes place at both private and public storage facilities. In the private instance there are fees involved, and contributors can access private storage banks for family members. In the public instance, there is no cost; donation is anonymous, and the bank is accessed by many non-related people, who are compatible with donors’ cells.  However, those stem cells are no longer owned by the family and are available to the general public.

Why is cord blood storage so important?

Cord blood storage provides an invaluable service in the treatment of diseases. For the most part, cord blood stem cells are utilized in transplant medicine to regenerate a patient’s blood and immune system after they have been treated with chemotherapy and/or radiation to destroy cancer cells. The list of diseases where stem cells can assist the healing process is absolutely impressive, and supports the value of cord blood storage. The disease list includes leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, Aplastic Anemia, Sickle Cell Anemia, various other cancers, blood diseases, hereditary/genetic conditions and immune system disorders. In addition, current research on the value of cord blood storage holds significant promise for improving the treatment of some of the most common diseases such as heart disease, stroke, and Alzheimer’s.

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Harvesting and Cord Blood Banking

February 19, 2011 By admin

Harvesting and Cord Blood Banking

Delivery rooms provide the starting point in the process of cord blood banking

Many people will take the time and make the sacrifice to provide some form of assistance to others in need.  What about the possibility of making a small sacrifice that can potentially rescue someone else from a challenging disease or life-threatening medical condition? Most would make such a sacrifice, and many make such sacrificesHarvesting and Cord Blood Banking every day.

Every day in hospital delivery rooms across the USA and other countries, the practice of cord blood banking is conducted as willing new mothers donate umbilical cords at birth previously used to nourish their newborns. This step is the starting point for cord blood banking – which involves the storage of cells taken from cord blood at incredibly low temperatures (down to -190 degrees). More precisely, cord blood is harvested within a mere 30 seconds of the newborn’s arrival; the umbilical cord is clamped and cut as usual, with the cord being transferred to a lab for cryopreservation. Importantly to this sacrifice for cord blood banking doesn’t cause any discomfort whatsoever for either mother or the new born.

Not a lot of cord blood is required for the storage process – just 75 ml on average (about 1/3 of a cup), but there are a number of ways to process a cord blood unit. Within the cord blood banking realm there are differing opinions on the best method for processing; some separate out the red blood cells and remove them while others keep the red blood cells. Generally speaking, though, both methods have proved to be equally effective.

Is cord blood banking safe?

Before blood from the umbilical cord is put in storage it undergoes viral tests including testing for HIV, Hepatitis B and C, and tissue typing, to insure safety. In addition, the National Cord Blood Program, located in New York, reports that cord blood stored over long periods of time shows no signs of deterioration whatsoever. The longest stored cord blood banking samples are now approximately sixteen years old and have been effectively transplanted just as successfully as the more current specimens.

So, the process is easy, safe and can be stored over long periods of time. The process of cord blood banking has been developed and perfected to today’s current scientific standards. Cord blood banking offers hope to many folks afflicted with blood disorders, immune deficiencies and genetic diseases – all based on the simple thoughtfulness and generosity of a new mom and her baby.

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