Painless & Safe Collection Blood stem cells from cord blood are easier to harvest. The harvesting process does not pose significant risk* to both mother and child. Harvesting blood stem cells from the bone marrow requires general anaesthesia, which entails some health risks. Bone marrow harvesting also involves some pain, as opposed to no pain at all with cord blood harvesting.
Readily Available
The stored cord blood stem cells are always readily available. This is a potential advantage as we do not waste precious time searching for potential blood stem cell donors. In some conditions, e.g. Aplastic Anemia, stem cell transplant timing is critical and having some blood stem cells readily available is very important and can minimise disease progression.
Easier to Match
Stem cell transplants using cord blood has less Graft Versus Host Disease (GVHD) and is, therefore, less risky for the recipient. This is because cord blood stem cells are less mature than those from the bone marrow and peripheral blood, and can successfully be used even when there is only a half-match. Due to lower GVHD risk, cord blood transplants can be attempted even if there is no perfect HLA matching. In private cord blood banking, the stored blood stem cells are kept for the individual. In view of the above, the stored cord blood stem cells can potentially be used for other family members.
*To ensure the quality and safety of the cord blood collection, each doctor and hospital staff involved is required to undergo procedural training. However, please note that for every collection there is still a risk of breach of confidentiality, coercion to donate, a needle stick and emotional and ethical issues associated with the collection, storage and use of the cord blood unit.
