Umbilical Cord Blood Basics

What Is Umbilical Cord Blood?

More so in recent years, there has been much discussion about why parents are opting for cord blood collection of their newborn, and it’s potential benefits for their child if they ever need a cord blood transplant for serious diseases such as leukaemia.

Umbilical cord blood cells are blood stem cells, that is, they are precursors to the various blood cells such as red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

These are different to embryonic stem cells which are capable of producing the many types of cells found in the body.

Cord blood cells are collected after the clamping of the umbilical cord at birth.

The small volume of blood between the cord and placenta is collected, and taken to a cord blood banking facility where it is tested to ensure it meets certain criteria and stored.

The blood cells in cord blood has the ability to generate the blood cells of that child to be a perfect match if he or she ever needs a cord blood transplant in future.

What Are The Advantages Of Cord Blood Banking?

The advantages of cord blood transplants over other types of transplants, specifically bone marrow transplants, to treat a specific disease are:

• The cord blood transplant for that child will be a perfect match.
• Umbilical cord blood is cryogenically stored and is available as soon as needed, instead of waiting weeks or months to find an adult bone marrow donor that is an adequate match.
• Collection of the cord blood is done easily and painlessly, and is not an invasive procedure such as bone marrow donation.

It is estimated that about 50% of patients requiring a bone marrow transplant in the US though traditional means of looking for a compatible adult bone marrow donor, cannot do so.

As mentioned, cord blood if collected for private use will mean that the child can receive a matched cord blood donation in a timely manner.

The advantages of cord blood collection and banking are even stronger if there's a child in the family with blood, immune or metabolic illness, and there being a risk of the illness in the next child.

Privately stored cord blood may also benefit siblings, though the chances of a perfect match for siblings is 25%.

Cord blood may be also collected and donated for public use as well.

Donated cord blood are collected by participating cord blood banks, and many are registered under the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) in the US.

So in this way, your child's cord blood may benefit other patients as well.

Read more about how to donate umbilical cord blood.