Lifeline Cord Blood

By STACI HUPP, The Dallas Morning News

Caden Ledbetter's stem cell transplant in December was a test of modern medicine. The six weeks of blood transfusions, fevers and fits that followed, all in an isolated hospital room, was a test of the Coppell toddler's spirit. In the latter battle, Caden came out a winner Monday. Doctors released the 2-year-old from Medical City Dallas Hospital, where he spent nearly two months in treatment for neuroblastoma, which is a fast-growing cancer of the nervous system...

In general sibling donors are better than unrelated donors for stem cell transplants.
The exact comparison depends on the patient's diagnosis and the stage of disease. The two important measures of patient outcome after a stem cell transplant are: long-term survival, and the amount of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) that the patient suffers.

According to results recently published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, autologous stem cell transplantation produces long-term survival in over half of pediatric patients with Wilms' tumor that has recurred following standard chemotherapy.

Cord blood can be used to treat a variety of diseases, including leukemia, by increasing the body’s natural immune system and increasing healthy blood count. A genetic match, either from the donor or a sibling, increases the chances of success.

By Rebecca Lewis

Frances was cured by her own cord blood. Doctors once suggested her parents take her home to die, but a young Auckland girl's winning determination to fight off cancer - and the unique treatment that helped - is now being used to save other lives...

The thought or sight of blood can make many people feel squeamish or faint, but for new parents a conversation about blood cannot always be avoided. The impact of cord blood banking been so large that July has been declared National Cord Blood Awareness Month and 27 states, including Wisconsin, mandate cord blood donation education. This remarkable 30-year-old medical science already has life-altering applications for a variety of illnesses, and ongoing clinical trials continue to explore future possibilities. But why?

The story of 'Saving Frances' - Frances cured from Stage 4 Neuroblastoma Cancer by the use of her Cord Blood, collected and stored when she was a baby by CordBank, Auckland, New Zealand.

International stem cell scientists, co-led in Canada by Dr. John Dick and in the Netherlands by Dr. Gerald de Haan, have discovered the switch to harness the power of cord blood and potentially increase the supply of stem cells for cancer patients needing transplantation therapy to fight their disease.

Elham, a 12-year-old girl from Isfahan, Iran, was diagnosed with the ALL form of leukemia in 2014. Since then she underwent chemotherapy three times as the main treatment method, but it turned out to be all in vain. She was cured by a stem cell transplant from her baby sister’s umbilical cord blood.

WFAA.com

A Lewisville toddler suffering from a rare form of cancer will be the first person to undergo a stem cell surgery that uses his own blood.  Craig Civale reports.

A Lewisville toddler suffering from a rare form of cancer will be the first person to undergo a stem cell surgery that uses his own blood.  Craig Civale reports.

September 25, 2017

Umbilical cord blood banking has become increasingly popular in recent years, with a number of businesses both public and private offering the service. It’s a relatively new concept, and there’s uncertainty about its overall value and whether it’s worth considering for a newborn child. We discuss the technology, its implementation, and how and why people are opting to store this blood for years — or decades.

By Rebecca Lewis

Frances was cured by her own cord blood. Doctors once suggested her parents take her home to die, but a young Auckland girl's winning determination to fight off cancer - and the unique treatment that helped - is now being used to save other lives...