Processing Cord Blood-Information For A Decision

The entire process of harvesting cord blood begins with a pregnancy. However the disadvantages of stem cell research once you have become pregnant there are decisions to be made about cord blood. Gaining insight through reading about the history of cord blood is a great place to begin. By being informed you can decide to preserve umbilical cord materials for your own future use or donate it for general purposes.

After your baby's cord blood arrives at a storage facility, tests will be performed to determine whether there are any infectious diseases such as hepatitis, leukemia, and HIV/AIDS. In some cases the blood will be stored with the associated risks noted. Parents can then assess if the risk of the disease present in the blood outweighs the need for the stem cells.

Cord blood that is stored will endure several steps before being banked. Division is the first step. Separation perhaps is a better description. There are scientific processes that create separation. One way is with a centrifuge and the other is sedimentation. Either process is equally effective.

Red blood cells (RBC) will be on the bottom, white blood cells (WBC) in the center and plasma on the top. The center layer, also known as the "buffy coat" contains the stem cells. Stem cells are what the preserving of cord blood is really all about, and most storage banks stop at that step.

There are banks that feel the need to take the process further in order to condense the materials necessary to store. Less material to store means more space for storage and less cryogenic nitrogen needed. In this final separation stage the mononuclear cells are removed from the white blood cells.

Removal of the red blood cells creates compatibility with more recipients. Some people may have the same human leukocyte antigens (HLA) which is essential for successful transplantation of stem cells but these donor and recipient may not have the same blood type. Removal of the red blood cells considerably minimizes the possibility of rejection and other adverse reactions to stem cell transplants.

Once this last step is completed the stem cell is frozen. Cryogenic storage was once a thing of fiction novels and wild imaginations. Long-term storage is becoming a common aspect of not only medical research but of medical science in general. Cord blood can presently be stored up to eighteen years and retain a high percentage of its original effective components.