News

Apr 2022   One of the variations between different MSC therapeutics is hemocompatibility: the risk that a high dose MSC infusion will trigger a blood clot. There is increasing risk of thromboembolism with MSC infusions as the MSC source goes from bone marrow, to perinatal tissue, to adipose tissue. Research shows that the risk can be quantified by testing the MSCs for their expression of procoagulant tissue factor (TF/CD142). It is also important to raise awareness of this risk factor so that both patients and their caregivers will recognize the symptoms of thromboembolism and seek appropriate medical care.

Mar 2022   Stoke is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. In this case report from StemCyte, a stroke patient recovered after an infusion of matched cord blood on the 8th day after the stroke. The patient had been paralyzed on one side of his body, but he made a complete recovery and returned to independent living.

Mar 2022   A woman in New York was cured of HIV after receiving a transplant of cord blood that carried a genetic mutation for resistance to HIV. This is a medical breakthrough, but only those patients that have both HIV plus a blood cancer like leukemia or lymphoma will be candidates for this promising therapy. 

Feb 2022   Brodie was one of the first children in Australia to receive sibling cord blood as treatment for cerebral palsy. After receiving an infusion of cord blood cells from his baby sister Zoey, Brodie showed notable improvements in his motor skills.  

Feb 2022   Many cord blood banks have charitable programs that offer free or discounted cord blood banking to families that have a medical condition which is eligible for therapy with cord blood. Parent’s Guide to Cord Blood has a web page that summarizes help for families in need.

Jan 2022   Lisa Maxson celebrated the 10th anniversary of her double cord blood transplant in Dec. 2021. She is alive today thanks to two mothers who decided to donate the umbilical cord blood of their babies. Lisa feels it is time to pay forward the gift of life that she has received, by advocating and volunteering for other patients like herself.

Jan 2022   During the Coronavirus pandemic, Iran has been the #3 country in the world in numbers of clinical trials to treat COVID-19 with cell therapy. Iran is home to a a thriving community of academic research on stem cells, as well as the mixed public and private cord blood bank Royan Stem Cell Technology. Royan fulfills public health needs in Iran by providing stem cells for transplant patients, especially families that have a child with Thalassemia and need to store cord blood for a sibling transplant.

Dec 2021   Vladomir suffered oxygen deprivation at birth, and this left him nearly blind. At age 11, Vladomir was treated with cells from both the cord blood and the cord tissue of his baby brother, with the two types of cell therapy spaced six months apart. The cord tissue MSC were injected into his spinal cord and into his eyes. Today, at age 13, Vladomir can see well enough to attend a regular school, ride a bicycle in traffic, and he participates fully in the activities of a normal teenager.

Dec 2021   Keratitis is an inflammation of the cornea that can be treated by surgical application of a wound dressing made from amniotic membrane. This article reports on a study in Ukraine where clinicians that specialize in eye disorders collaborated with a biobank supplying cryopreserved amniotic membrane. Within 3 months after surgery, 96% of patients had fully recovered.

Nov 2021   We have put together a Parent's Guide to the Duke Expanded Access Program. This program offers compassionate access to cord blood cell therapy for children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Many aspects of this program are not clear to parents, and have been misrepresented by critics. The heart of this article is a table listing all of Duke's relevant cord blood clinical trials and their outcomes.