New process will accelerate umbilical cord blood collections
A change in the process of how mothers are informed of the opportunity to donate cord blood should significantly accelerate collections for the pilot public cord blood program, according to the Rhode Island Blood Center’s Chief Medical Officer.
Until recently, mothers could not be approached after being admitted to Women & Infants Hospital for delivery, but instead had to go to the Rhode Island Blood Center sometime prior to their hospital admission to register for the program.
The change in the process was approved recently by Women & Infant’s Institutional Review Board (IRB).
The public cord blood bank, the first in New England, was opened on May 11 as a joint venture by the Rhode Island Blood Center, Women & Infants Hospital and Community Blood Services of New Jersey.
Under the program, the blood from umbilical cords is collected at Women & Infants, tested and stored at CBS facilities in New Jersey, where it also goes under further testing.
For the first few months, the Rhode Island Blood Center has aggressively approached obstetricians and other physicians, pharmacies, and other establishments and organizations that interact with pregnant women to educate them about the program. Brochures are available at a variety of places, as well as the blood center.
With the change in process, collections should “greatly increase,” said Dr. Caroline Young, vice president and chief medical officer of the Rhode Island Blood Center. Dr. Young said that several women had informed hospital staff, after admission, that if they had known about the program they would have registered. Now, the cord blood bank will be able to register those women in the hospital, while also continuing to register expectant mothers at the Blood Center.
What’s at stake is the full development of a program that is proving to be significant in the collection of stem cells and saving lives.
Claire Allen, supervisor for the Blood Center’s Cord Blood Program, said that some 10,000 people a year search for a marrow match, but only 40 percent actually find a match.
“There are parents hoping, wishing and praying for a match to show up,” Claire said. “Umbilical cord stem cells could be that match.
“As a mom, I couldn’t even imagine what it’s like to have a child with leukemia or sickle cell, to watch the struggle, the pain they go through,” Claire said. “I’ve been blessed. I have two very healthy children. I can’t imagine the joy I would feel if someone donated cord blood, marrow, stem cells so that my child would no longer have pain, or no longer have illness, and would have a future.”
The goal of the National Marrow Donor Program, Dr. Young said, is to store the blood of some 150,000 cords. It would be the only bank where stem cells are actually stored.
Establishing a public cord bank in Rhode Island has been discussed for perhaps a decade, Dr. Young said, but really took hold about two years ago with the help of Representative Eileen Naughton, who helped secure the funding for the pilot program. Representative Naughton heads the House’s Health committee, and has been a very strong proponent of the cord blood program.
“We’re going in baby steps, to see if there’s an interest,” said Dr. Young, noting that establishing a full-blown public cord blood bank in Rhode Island, with storage facilities, would cost in excess of $2 million.
After a year, she said, the program will be evaluated with the determination either to continue the pilot program, move forward with development of a full cord blood banking facility, or looking in some other direction.
There are advantages to cord blood, Dr. Young said. You don’t need as exact a match with cord blood as you do with marrow, and there are no ethical issues, since the blood can only be collected after a live birth.
“It’s completely painless and no ethical considerations,” Dr. Young said. “You save a life or throw away the blood in a basket. I think it’s a wonderful program. Me – any mother that I could think of would want to donate their cord blood, save a life. I can’t think of any other decision.”
