Cord blood banking has been in the news extensively in India.  Along with a number of cord blood banks starting to offer services in India, there have been some high profile treatments delivered, using the stem cells from cord blood.  A recent story involves an Indian family that delivered a second child to save the life of their firstborn.

Their baby suffered from thalassemia, a disorder causing the production of abnormal hemoglobin.  Typically, treated with blood transfusions, thalassemia can be cured through the transplant of stem cells that can be found in bone marrow or cord blood.  Stem cell matches are even more difficult to find in India than in the United States so doctors suggested the family conceive another child to attempt to find a match for their sick child.

The family conceived a second child and the baby was a match!  The stem cell transplant was successful and the older daughter is now thalassemia-free.  While siblings are not guaranteed to be a match, they are more likely to match a child than the general population.  We love to hear about successful cord blood treatments.

Michael A. Werner, MD, the clinical director of M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood Laboratories has put together a white paper defining the different types of stem cells, as well as the current and potential uses for treatment.  Read the stem cell white paper here.

Enjoy,

Back in March, we wrote about a Today Show segment about a baby who had been treated for cerebral palsy using his own cord blood.  Another child from the Duke University study treating cerebral palsy has been introduced to the media.  A little girl from Colorado also received the cord blood stem cell treatment.  Read the full story here.

I read an interesting article on using cord blood to restore hearing.  A group of scientists in Italy are researching the use of stem cells to repair hearing loss due to cochlear damage. 

The scientists have shown that following transplantation of human umbilical cord blood stem cells, a small number of the cells migrated to the cochlear and repaired sensory hair cells and neurons. 

Here is a link to the full press release.

Parents frequently ask us if another family member can use the cord blood or if it is reserved solely for the baby.  The answer to that is very simple.  Since you are the person banking the cord blood, you own it.  You can provide it to anyone you wish.  If another family member is a match you can choose to give it to him.  Of course, the only person for whom the cord blood is likely to be a perfect match is the baby (or an identical twin).   

One of the questions frequently asked of our cord blood coordinators is, “Why do you need to know about my travel history?”  This is because one of the questions on our health history form asks about parents’ travel history outside the U.S.  We ask this because the NY State Department of Health requires that we keep this information on record.  The information is important in case a health advisory were to be issued for a certain country for a specific period of time (similar to Great Britain during the mad cow scare).  If that were to happen, all of the records would be available.

Any cord blood bank that is licensed in NY State is required to collect this information.  It is important to guarantee the safety of all of the cord blood in our care.

Researchers in Italy have discovered a new way to administer cord blood transplants for leukemia patients.  Leukemia was one of the first diseases treated using cord blood transplants.  Traditionally, leukemia is treated with a cord blood transplant that is administered through a vein in the patient’s arm.  The Italian scientists attempted a new method of administration, injection directly into the patient’s bone. 

The study incorporated patients where a cord blood transplant was indicated, but the physicians were unable to identify a match of at least 6 HLA (the minimum currently required for a transplant).  Researchers encountered excellent levels of engraftment and low rates of graft-versus-host disease,  a concern with unrelated cord blood transplants.

If further researcher proves this treatment to be successful, it will improve the likelihood of leukemia patients being able to find a match in a public cord blood bank.  That will be especially beneficial for patients with mixed race or other unique backgrounds who currently find it nearly impossible to find a match in a public cord blood bank.   

Many parents we speak with understand that saving cord blood is a good thing, but don’t really understand why it is more beneficial than relying on the public cord blood bank.

The biggest reason why a baby’s own cord blood is better than donated cord blood is because of HLA matching.  HLA stands for human leukocyte antigen.  These are markers within the human body’s cells that tell the body which cells belong and which are invaders.  When using donated cord blood or bone marrow, surgeons require a match of at least six key markers.  When using a child’s own cord blood stem cells, a complete match is guaranteed.  This promotes engraftment of the cells while preventing host versus graft disease. 

An amazing article appeared in one of the blogs from Discover magazine.  Apparently, researchers have taken blood progenitor cells (found in cord blood and bone marrow) and used them to grow entire networks of blood vessels in mice.  The cells were implanted in mice and within seven days, a “vigorous network” of blood vessels formed and began conducting blood. 

All I can say is wow!  This could eventually eliminate the need for things like angioplasty and maybe even bypass surgery.  Since these are both difficult and dangerous surgeries, it would be so much better to just grow new blood vessels.

USA Today recently ran a story about a nine-month-old baby suffering from severe combined immunodeficiency.  This prevents his body from producing enough T cells to fight off disease.  the condition is often referred to as “bubble boy” disease because its victims are so vulnerable to infectious disease that they must live in protective bubbles. 

Granton Bayless was admitted to the hospital in March, suffering from pneumonia and respiratory synctial virus.  He was placed on a ventilator and given medicine to paralyze him so he wouldn’t hurt himself with the equipment. 

Following an exhaustive search for a bone-marrow or cord-blood match, Granton finally received an umbilical cord blood transplant at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Mo.  Cord blood was chosen because there was less of a chance that it would damage the surrounding tissue.  Since the transplant, Granton’s recovery has been awe inspiring.  A recent blood test showed that 86% of his white blood cells were donor cells.  In addition, Granton is producing “natural killer cells,” which are important for fighting infection. 

Risks still remain, particularly that the donor cells will begin to attack the baby’s own cells, but his parents are hopful.  Since the treatment, Granton has gained weight, become more active, and even more importantly, his parents are able to hold him again. 

Hopefully, this will become another happy ending brought about be an umbilical cord blood stem cell transplant.