Shai was a feisty little girl whose mother used her scientific background to search for the best approach to cure her cancer. Shai narrowly escaped death many times, including a recovery that even her doctors considered a miracle, yet she died at dawn on the day that she would have begun kindergarten. Her mother went on to found this website and charity in her memory.
In theory, any expectant mother who passes the medical screening is eligible to donate. In practice, the biggest hurdle faced by families who wish to donate is finding a bank to accept their donation. There are only about 200 hospitals in the US that collect cord blood donations from births, and most of them require you to register for donation weeks ahead of the birth. The handful of programs that accept mail-in donations are opening this opportunity to the rest of the American public.
How does the Institute of Medicine influence cord blood education?
Congress commissioned an Institute of Medicine study on the ideal structure of a national cord blood
program. Based on the IoM report, Congress passed the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005 that was signed into law 20 Dec. 2005. The key language regarding education is the requirement: Information provided to the maternal donor regard(s) all of her medically appropriate cord blood options. ie: Education of expectant parents and Informed Consent of maternal donors should cover all options, not just donation.
