Cord blood transplantation has saved the lives of thousands of patients worldwide since 1988, when a patient with Fanconi anemia received his sister's cord blood at age 6. Now the patient is currently healthy with a complete long-term hematologic and immunologic donor reconstitution.

There are three good reasons why we should save the cord blood stem cells:

(i) Autologous (self-derived) cord blood stem cell transplantation:

The cryopreserved stem cells may be used for the child from whom the cord blood was originally collected. Hence, banking the child's cord blood provides a "biological insurance" for the health of the child, in case he or she may one day need stem cell therapy. In this situation, a perfectly matching supply of stem cells will be immediately available.

(ii) Allogeneic (non self-derived) cord blood stem cell transplantation:

Since there is a high likelihood of a good tissue match, the cryopreserved stem cells collected from a child may also be used for other family members. Even with an imperfect match, there is a much higher chance of a successful transplant when using cord blood stem cells from a close relative rather than bone marrow stem cells. Many children with leukemia and other diseases have been saved by cord blood previously collected from their siblings.

(iii) Banking on the future of cord blood stem cells:

Umbilical cord blood stem cells have enormous potential for treating many diseases other than those of the blood and immune systems. Research has shown that umbilical cord blood stem cells may differentiate into many other types of tissue, such as nerve cells, heart muscle cells, and insulin-producing pancreatic cells. In the future, stem cell therapy may help to regenerate an injured spinal cord, repair a diseased heart, or cure diabetes. This is probably the most important reason to bank cord blood. Since cord blood stem cells can be cryopreserved indefinitely, saving a child's cord blood today may be an important investment in his or her future health. It is not an unrealistic expectation that such advanced stem cell technology may become a reality during the lifetime of the child whose cord blood has been stored.

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