Information regarding public
cord blood donation.

The importance of public cord blood donation.

Thousands of people every year are diagnosed with a life threatening disease that can be treated by replacing or rebuilding the system that creates blood cells; usually patients are forced to rely on a bone marrow transplant but suitable donors can be difficult to find and even when one is found the process can be long and debilitating for both the donor and the person receiving the marrow. Recent studies have shown that umbilical cord blood is an excellent resource that can be used in place of bone marrow making public cord blood donation more than just a viable alternative.

Public cord blood donation compared to bone marrow donation.

It is true that the patient needs to be matched to the donor; however, many of the patients requiring a bone marrow transplant fail to receive one because there are fewer donors than there are patients. The use of cord blood donors greatly increases a patient's chance of receiving the medical attention that they require and because the process or extracting the cord blood is simple, efficient and painless it is a method that looks set to increase in popularity for all parties.

How the cord blood is extracted.

Once your baby is born the blood is extracted from the umbilical cord either by use of a syringe or by draining the blood into a sterile bag. Neither the baby nor the mother is affected in any way during the process and the birth is not altered in any way. The process of extracting the blood and storing it is free for anyone who is interested in public cord blood donation and, at present, tests have shown that the blood remains healthy for a minimum of fifteen years. With a bone marrow transplant it is necessary to wait until the time that a transplant is required and then the donor will effectively donate their marrow at that time. The transplant must be done quickly in order to ensure the best possible chance of success and there is no way to store the marrow as there is with cord blood.

What they are doing with stem cells.

By transplanting stem cells a number of diseases can be treated and even completely cured. These diseases can be fatal if left untreated, and the more and more research that is carried out into the use of cord blood to gain these stem cells, the more and more possible uses are being found. Various strains of cancer and leukemia have already been successfully treated using cord blood transplants and even Glaucoma can, in theory, be cured.

Glaucoma arises when too much pressure being placed on the eye damages the optic nerve stem cells. The introduction of new and healthy stem cells means that the eye can basically heal itself. Tests are also being carried out on patients with diabetes and Parkinson's and progress is good. Treatment for some of these diseases through the use of a cord blood transplant are a way off but the results do look very positive and progress is fairly steady.

The future of cord blood donation.

It sounds almost unbelievable that stem cells have the ability to transform from one sort of cell into another completely different type of cell. Scientists are now studying ways to control the action that dictates the change in stem cells and some findings have not only been documented but used on a successful basis. One thing that was discovered early on in the experimental stage was that the patient does still require the stem cells transplanted to match his or her own blood type.

In the case of bone marrow transplants this is dictated by cell lineages from red bone marrow stem cells and with umbilical cord blood it has become evident that matches are more frequently found from people with the same ethnical background. Public cord blood donation is becoming more popular as research discovers an increasing number of ways that cord blood can be used, however many more donors are required in order to ensure that any patient who may potentially require a transplant can receive cord blood that is matched to their own blood. Public cord blood donation is free, simple and harmless in states that have the facility to store it, and the extraction of the blood does not affect the mother, baby or birth.

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