RI Blood Center and Women & Infants Hospital pilot New England’s first public cord blood bank
Dr. Roger Mrowiec of the New Jersey Cord Blood Bank checks frozen cord blood at the blood bank’s facility in Allendale, NJ.
The Rhode Island Blood Center and Women & Infants Hospital began a 12-month pilot program on May 11th to determine the feasibility of establishing the first public cord blood bank in New England.
Partnering with the New Jersey Cord Blood Bank, operated by Community Blood Services of New Jersey, umbilical cord blood is being collected from newborn babies born at Women & Infants and shipped to the Community Blood Services public cord bank in Allendale, New Jersey, for processing and storage. Testing of the cord blood units will be performed at both centers.
Cord blood is a source of lifesaving stem cells for the treatment of dozens of diseases such as cancers, leukemia, anemia, and genetic disorders. Even though cord blood centers have been operating for well over a decade, the utilization of cord blood stem cells is still relatively new.
Research continues to determine if cord blood stem cells can successfully be used in the treatment of such diseases as diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, heart disease, stroke, and brain injuries. Already, it has provided a cure for the treatment of sickle cell disease.
“On what is the 30th anniversary year of the Rhode Island Blood Center we are embarking on one of our most exciting ventures,” said Scott Asadorian, the Blood Center’s chief operating officer. “We are hopeful that our pilot program will prove that a cord blood bank is not only feasible in New England, but will become an important part of the development of this technology, helping to save thousands of lives.”
Dr. Dennis Todd, PhD, president and CEO of Community Blood Services, said that in the United States between 60,000 to 90,000 cord blood units are currently stored in public banks, about half the goal of the National Marrow Donor Program.
He said there have been upwards of 10,000 cord blood transplants worldwide, Many of these patients, he said, were unable to find a bone marrow match through marrow donor programs and a cord blood transplant was “their last hope.”
Under the pilot program, the Rhode Island Blood Center is working closely with Women & Infants, the state’s largest birthing hospital. The Blood Center has initiated an extensive educational campaign to inform parents of the importance of donating cord blood.
“Cord blood donation is an incredible, painless way to save someone’s life,” said Dr. Carolyn Young, the Rhode Island Blood Center’s Chief Medical Officer. “There is no controversy, unlike embryonic stem cells.
“The cord blood collection is performed after the birth of the baby and the stem cells may be frozen indefinitely for use when needed. There are no fees to donate cord blood or to store it for public use.”
The Rhode Island Blood Center does the initial screening and testing. Cord blood units are sent to Community Blood Services only if certain criteria are met.
“Women & Infants is pleased to be partnering with the Rhode Island Blood Center on such an important initiative,” said W. Dwayne Lawrence, MD, chief of pathology and laboratory medicine at Women & Infants. “The possibilities are astounding for treating life-threatening illnesses using the readily available stem cells found in umbilical cord blood.”
Please feel free to visit the cord blood section of our website here.