What is Cord Blood?

Cord blood is the blood of a newborn baby that returns to the neonatal circulation when the umbilical cord is not clamped. There is approximately 180 mL of blood which travels from the newborn baby naturally. Modern obstetric practice follows the procedure of clamping the end of the umbilical cord to prevent this blood from draining out of the baby. If this does not occur, however, a natural clamping occurs when the Wharton's jelly, a gelatinous substance, swells up and closes off the artery and veins in the umbilical cord.

Cord blood is rich in hematopoietic stem cells, essentially the building blocks of the blood's cellular structure. This makes it a prime candidate for genetic research that can isolate genes which cause diseases. Cord blood can be utilized to identify ways in which an individual or their family's genetic disorders can be treated or even cured. The hemotopoietic stem cells are harvested from the blood and research is done on them to find out where certain genetic mutations have occurred and how to rectify the situation. The most common use is to help with patients needing bone marrow transplants.

The way cord blood is harvested is by allowing childbirth to occur as it would in any normal situation. After the baby is free from the mother, the umbilical cord is clamped. Under sterile conditions, doctors then use a large needle that is inserted into the umbilical cord. The blood is removed in a timely manner before the cord becomes swollen. The collection is then stored in cool conditions, until it is needed by the individual or a family member.

The National Marrow Donor Program has set up a system of public cord banks that have begun storing cord blood for general public use. This includes research or, if necessary, transfusion of the cord blood. However, researchers are torn as to the full spectrum of uses for cord blood. Most believe the blood's benefits are limited to people of similar genetic composition. The first cord blood transplant was performed in 1988 by Dr. Pablo Rubinstein. He transfused the cord blood of a newborn into the baby's sibling to great success. Further research began after that, culminating in the first cord blood storage program at the New York Blood Center.

Many private companies have set up cord blood banks to store the fetal blood for use in the donor or the donor's families. When there is a history of genetic disorders within a family, the private companies store the blood for later use. These private cord blood banks are for-profit services that charge approximately $2000 for initial collection and $125 per year for storage according to 2007 prices. These banks are controversial within the medical community due to the fact that they make money from the misfortunes of families.