Cord blood donations – a new hope for human kind

Cord blood is considered to be the most valuable source of stem cells, easy to find and collect from the umbilical cord after the birth of a baby. Due to the new technological discoveries and the high-accuracy systems of preservation, the stem cells from the cord blood may be successfully used for rebuilding the blood system of a patient with blood disorders. Therefore, cord blood donation must be encouraged and should become available to all the people.

Umbilical cord blood is known to be an important source of stem cells, unique from the genetic point of view for your baby and family. Stem cells are the most valuable cells, being the basis of the immune system, which contribute to the formation of three main ingredients of the blood: red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets; and have some other important roles in the good functioning of the human body. According to the latest discoveries in the technological area, the cord blood stem cells may be responsible for improving the treatment of some life-threatening diseases. From this point of view, we must speak about the importance of cord blood donation to a public bank for being used in transplants for the people in need - those suffering from some common diseases, such as stroke, heart disease and Alzheimer's, acute and chronic leukemia, stem cells disorders, congenital immune system disorders, malignancies, autoimmune diseases and many other disorders. It is surprising to find out that each year thousands of people are diagnosed with these diseases and meanwhile both umbilical cord and placenta are thrown away after each birth. Another important fact to mention is that the first cord blood transplant took place in 1988 and since then more than 4,000 transplants were performed. These aspects being related, we may say that the low rate of cord blood donation doesn't have any excuses.

Unfortunately, the fact that few families are able to donate cord blood (most of them banking it for their own families due to their family history) represents an obstacle for the development of cord blood donation . Another obstacle in popularizing the umbilical cord blood donation is represented by the fact that it is only possible in a few hospitals in several regional locations and with a limited number of donation facilities. Only a limited number of hospitals may accept cord blood donation, a fact that is a serious barrier in making this kind of donation popular. An umbilical cord blood donation program is a very rare, although a very necessary program that should be installed in a greater number of hospitals all over the world, being given the new discoveries of the possible use of cord blood stem cells. Another obstacle in developing the cord blood donation practice may be the scientific and ethical questions and controversies about this subject. Some of these controversies are raised by the common skepticism of some doctors and scientists. On the other hand, there is a common fight between storing the cord blood for a potential family member's occurred problem or donating it for a public bank where the likelihood of its usage is very high.

Even if cord blood donation is encouraged, not every woman may donate it. There are several conditions and the first one has been already mentioned: an available participating hospital to the donation campaign of cord blood. Another request is the health and age of the mother and in this sense it is required to answer to some family health history questions. A small blood sample is needed for testing the possibility of diseases. The best time to contact a cord blood bank is by the 34 th week of pregnancy. The collection and storage of the cord blood is performed after the birth and will be transplanted to a matching patient. Even if the donated cord blood doesn't accomplish the criteria for transplant, it may be used in the research work for improving the medical uses of the cord blood. When cord blood banks have sufficient umbilical cord blood donations the chances to find a match for the patients in need grow and so do the chances of improving someone's health or even saving someone's life.

The information about a cord blood donation and its importance for the patients with fatal genetic blood disorders and heart or liver diseases should be the information that every person is aware of as in the case of the simple blood donation. All the programs of umbilical cord blood donations should be sustained and developed for the hope of all the patients who were thought of suffering from incurable diseases till nowadays. Educational resources about cord blood donation should be provided in as many countries as possible, developing training programs for the efficient collection and use as well as for the successful transplantation of cord blood stem cells for the people in need.