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The lifesaving adult stems cells teaming in cord blood remains one of the best-kept secrets in medicine today. Already being used to treat thousands of patients with more than 70 diseases and conditions, cord blood stem cell research continues to yield new results and therapies from what was once considered medical waste.
So just what is cord blood?
After a baby is born and the umbilical cord is cut, the remaining blood of the placenta and the portion of the umbilical cord that remains attached to it are no longer needed by the baby. This blood is called placental blood or umbilical cord blood: "cord blood" for short.
Cord blood is rich in hematopoietic (blood-forming) stem cells, similar to those found in bone marrow. However, cord blood offers distinct advantages that make it better for medical treatments and transplants than bone marrow.
Bone marrow stem cells are hard to obtain, as donation requires surgery and donors often find themselves in considerable pain and discomfort after the operation. Cord blood stem cells are easier to collect from donors and collection is painless for both mother and child.
Furthermore, where bone marrow transplants generally require a perfect match between donor and recipient, mismatched cord blood transplants are possible (and have been performed), making it easier to find a suitable match. Cord blood stem cells also tend to be rejected by transplant recipients far less than bone marrow stem cells.
Unlike embryonic stem cell research—which to date has yet to produce any cures or treatments—cord blood and other adult stem cell research already have resulted in clinical treatments. Leukemia, Cerebral Palsy, Sickle Cell Anemia and Hodgkin’s Disease are among the diseases and conditions from which adults and children are currently being treated with stem cells derived from cord blood.
And the promise that cord blood and other adult stem cells hold is just beginning to be unlocked. Published studies have shown that stem cells in cord blood can become other cell types, including nerve cells, heart cells and insulin-secreting cells. This offers the potential to yield a cure for spinal-cord injuries and non-blood related diseases including Parkinson's disease, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and heart disease.
Despite the fact that umbilical cords are a rich, non-controversial source of stem cells, hospitals still currently throw millions of them away each year. A shortage of staff trained in the procurement and handling of cord blood combined with a deficiency of storage capacity means that hospitals around the country have been discarding this rich source of stem cells for years.
In 2001, U.S. Rep. Chris Smith set out to change this trend and allow the healing power of cord blood stem cells to benefit more Americans. That year, Smith authored the “Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005” to channel the strength and resources of the federal government to increase the nation’s supply of cord blood, and create a national registry to match cord blood for those in need now opening the door to potentially hundreds of cures and treatments by using the stem cells in umbilical cords. Finally, after four years of relentless work by Smith, Congress passed the bill and President Bush signed it into law in December 2005.
In total, the “Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005” (P.L. 109-129) authorized $265 million dollars for umbilical cord blood collection and storage and for reauthorization of the National Bone Marrow Registry. The law created the first national inventory to collect the needed units of blood and make them readily available. It authorized collection of 150,000 units of cord blood, with a focus on genetic diversity that is expected to meet the needs of 90% of all patients. These units will be made available through an open registry that will link public cord blood banks nationwide to simplify a physician’s search for a blood match.
Smith’s law will increase the medical utilization rate for this vastly under-appreciated source of stem cells, but it will also promote ethical stem cell research. All cord blood collected and deemed unsuitable for transplant will be donated for research.
Medical professionals already are utilizing scientific advancements from cord blood stem cell research today. For instance, when cord blood research first began, the prevailing thought was that it could be used only for transplants in children and not for adults. Research has since demonstrated that cord blood can be used to treat adults.
The stem cells in umbilical cord blood are indeed ready for extensive use in treatments for both children and adults, and we are likely to see the utilization rates for cord blood skyrocket as a result of this new program. But the lives saved by cord blood won’t stop there. The investment in ethical stem cell research will undoubtedly lead to more medical uses for cord blood. This truly is stem cell therapy and research we can all get behind.
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Fact Sheet: Cord Blood Stem Cells
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"Stem Cells of Hope, Not Hype, Are Curing People," by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, The Hill, 09/14/2005
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Rep. Smith's Floor Statement in Support of the "Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005" (H.R. 2520)
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Text of “The Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005” (P.L. 109-129)[.pdf]
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| Cord Blood Q & A (Sponsored by the New York Blood Center)
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