News

Jan 2026   When their daughter was diagnosed with Thalassemia, the parents banked cord blood from her younger brother. Two years later those sibling stem cells provided a life saving transplant. This story demonstrates both the power of cord blood banking, as well as the value of international networks to connect families, banks, and transplant centers.

Jan 2026   Within the United States, whole blood donors are not paid, versus donors of blood derivatives are paid. To avoid blood shortages, it may be time to reconsider "payments" to blood donors. Other countries employ a wide variety of incentives that are not cash payments.

Dec 2025   Outside on a golf course, a kid can be a kid. The H.E.A.R.T.S. Club at Hillandale Golf Course provides support and respite to the families of children going through cell therapy at Duke University.  

Dec 2025   The US government plans to reduce reimbursements for skin substitutes made of placenta. This has turned into a political topic, with millions of dollars spent on lobbying and many reversals of policy. We started covering this story in January 2025 and have major updates posted through December 2025.

Dec 2025   Zbigniew “Roger” Mrowiec, PhD, has retired from serving as Laboratory Director of the cell therapy facilities at Vitalant New Jersey (originally known as Community Blood Services). Under Roger’s leadership, the lab was responsible for many firsts. This memoir tells those stories so that the record will not be lost.

Nov 2025   Akshoy is the first child in India to have a successful cord blood transplant for thalassemia after conception of a savior sibling through PGD IVF. This was made possible by the Save The Sibling project that brings together expertise in  reproductive medicine, stem cell science, and clinical transplantation.

Nov 2025   Media Training teaches us that anything disparaging that is said to the media about "other" people in the same industry could be misinterpreted and have negative consequences for the entire industry.

Nov 2025   Some US patients need life-saving blood derivatives that are made from the plasma of US donors. Yet, some of those plasma derivatives are produced outside of the US, and the processing may use bags and equipment that are also manufactured outside the US. Thus, depending on the specific blood derivative, US payers are being charged a tariff to deliver blood products from US donors to US patients.

Oct 2025   This year was the 25th anniversary of the Rainbow of Heroes Walk. The ROH Walk is a celebration and remembrance of loved ones that have undergone a stem cell transplant at the Duke division of Pediatric Transplant and Cellular Therapy (PCTC).

Oct 2025   Today in Greece, 30% of parents that are having babies in private maternity hospitals choose to privately store cord blood. But the Greek health regulations force private banks to throw out most of these collections. The number of cord blood banks in Greece is now 4 private and 3 public, down from 2010 numbers of 23 private and 3 public.