Donated stem cells (also known as allogeneic stem cells) are often the only hope for treating a cancer patient. Typically, when a patient learns that a stem cell transplant is necessary they immediately assume that the stem cells will come from a bone marrow donor. Finding a donor requires the patient to work with a transplant center who will begin a search to find a matching donor via a public registry such as BeTheMatch and/or WMDA.  The donor could come from any corner of the world.  The donor must be contacted and asked if they still agree to donate bone marrow. Meanwhile, the cancer patient is waiting, hoping and preparing themselves for the eventual procedure. 

Let's assume that the transplant center does find a bone marrow donor match. What happens next? Well, it is still a long and complicated process. Remember, the donor could be anyone, anywhere in the world. Are they still available? Are they healthy enough to donate? Are they prepared to make this type of commitment still? How quickly can they get to the required facility to actually donate? 

Is there a better solution? 

Now, let's assume that the transplant center finds a match via cord blood. What happens next? 

Simple. They order it.

Once a cord blood match is identified (often via the same public registries used for bone marrow), the transplant center simply orders the cord blood unit.  Collected at birth and frozen until needed, the donated cord blood unit can be made available immediately. It will be delivered directly to the transplant center where is it prepared by the team for infusion. It is administered to the patient much like a classic blood infusion. 

By choosing cord blood as the source of stem cells for this patient, the transplant center has not only saved time but they have avoided complicated logistics. They have also opened the door to new opportunities for stem cell transplantation.

What other advantages or disadvantages are there to choosing cord blood as a source of stem cells?  

Let's ask an expert in stem cell transplants. . .
​
For our next edition of Share the Science, we are proud to welcome Dr. Karen Ballen, Professor of Medicine and Section Chief of Hematology, Hematologic Malignancy, and Stem Cell Transplant at the University of Virginia. Dr. Ballen will discuss the challenges and opportunities alternative donor stem cell transplantation provides. She will review the indications and side effects of allogeneic transplant and discuss the selection of the optimal donor for each patient, including matched related and unrelated donors, and haploidentical donors and umbilical cord blood donors. She will also review recent data on umbilical cord blood transplant and minimal residual disease, as well as current large studies comparing donor sources. 

In this webinar, attendees will learn: 

• Indication for cord blood transplantation
• Donor options available for patients with blood cancers
• Patient outcomes after cord blood transplant
• The differences between public and private banking and how to find the best donor
• The importance of diverse cord blood unit availability
• The effect of cord blood licensure

​Perinatal cells offer a promising opportunity for a wide range of regenerative medicine applications because of their unique immune modulatory properties, rather than their differentiation ability. As the director of one the most prestigious centers for regenerative medicine, Dr. Allickson is in a unique position to discuss the future of perinatal stem cells as a resource in the growing field of regenerative medicine. In her presentation, Dr. Allickson will provide information on clinically translating perinatal cells in an academic facility. She will detail the steps in clinical translation of cell therapy products, review an accelerated model of translation in an academic environment and discuss the assessment of perinatal tissues and cell in pre-clinical studies. 
​

Delayed cord clamping has become a hot topic in recent years and a source of debate for many. The term refers to the practice of letting your newborn’s umbilical cord pulse by postponing cutting the cord instead of immediately cutting it after birth. The debate centers around the optimum time for clamping. . . 10-20 seconds, 30 seconds, 1 minute, 3 minutes, 10 minutes, etc.  Unfortunately, there have only been very limited studies on the subject. Practices and recommendations vary wildly from one country or region to another. Social media has also unfortunately fed a lot of misinformation to new parents and healthcare professionals leading to great confusion on the topic.

In 2017, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released a position statement on delayed cord blood clamping recommending an interval of 30-60 seconds after delivery of healthy term babies. 
​
Read the full ACOG statement on delayed cord clamping here.

Following this recommendation from ACOG, a 30-60 second delay has become standard practice for many birthing hospitals. However, some parents worry that this timing could mean that they could no longer save their baby's cord blood either for donation or private use. Some feel it should be an even longer delay before clamping the umbilical cord. The private cord blood community and the network of public cord banks (who help provide stem cell matches to patients in need everyday via programs like BeTheMatch) have also become concerned the possible impacts to cord blood collection.

We invite you to join us for a special session of Share the Science dedicated to delayed cord clamping and the impacts on cord blood collections. Kate Girard. RN, MSN will provide an overview on the timing of cord clamping and review the data driving the increase in delayed cord clamping.  She will also look at how this practice affects collection volumes and provide accessible information for parents and professionals on policies, procedures and education regarding delayed clamping. 

Attendees will learn about:

• Historical and current cord clamping practices and associated professional association recommendations
• Objective data on the impact of delayed clamping on the volume and cell count of umbilical cord blood collections
• Strategies for facilitating evidence-based conversations and education with both the expectant parent and OB audiences