The Collection and Storage of Umbilical Cord Blood for Transplantation
M.D. Anderson Cancer Center
Summary
The goal of this study is to collect blood samples from the umbilical cords of newborn babies, as soon as they are delivered, and to place these samples in the MD Anderson Cord Blood Bank. Your sample may be included in the National Cord Blood Inventory (NCBI) which is part of the CW Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program. The NCBI is a federally-supported program to assist in the collection of cord blood. Cord blood will be made available to patients through The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP). These samples may then be offered to MD Anderson and other institutions for patients who need a bone marrow transplant and do not have a donor. The MD Anderson Cord Blood Bank will have the rights to release cord blood units to these institutions around the world according to established bone marrow transplant donor criteria, for a fee to cover costs. Cord blood samples that are collected and then do not meet the clinical requirements for patient use may also be used at MD Anderson or other institutions either for research or for quality purposes to improve cord blood banking procedures. If not suitable for patient use or for research purposes, the cord blood unit may be thrown away.
Description
The blood in an unborn baby's umbilical cord contains blood-making cells that could help treat another person with a life-threatening disease. These cord blood cells may provide cells for transplants given to patients with marrow diseases such as leukemia. These cord blood transplants can be done when a patient's cell type (human leukocyte antigen, or HLA, type) matches the cord blood type. 'Cord blood' is normally thrown away with the umbilical cord and placenta after the baby is born. Collection of the cord blood takes place after your new baby is born and the umbilical cord has been clampe…