Storing umbilical cords could save lives

Biochemist calls for a public cord blood bank which would enable up to 40 transplants a year

LIFE-SAVING TRANSPLANTS using umbilical cord blood could be carried out on up to 40 patients in Ireland every year, if cords were saved after births, it has been argued.

Biochemist Peadar Mac Gabhann, whose company Biostór Ireland submitted a proposal to Your Country Your Call (YCYC) on the merits of a not-for-profit public cord blood bank, said that cords were currently discarded as waste in Irish maternity hospitals.

Since 1988 more than 20,000 cord blood transplants have been performed worldwide, mostly to treat acute leukaemia in children and adults when neither a sibling nor a suitable adult volunteer donor was available, he said.

Cord transplants are regarded as easier to match, less invasive and less expensive than bone marrow transplants, said Mr Mac Gabhann whose company is licensed by the Irish Medicines Board to store human tissue and cells.

The International Marrow Donor Program has estimated that 70 per cent of patients who need a transplant are unable to find a matching donor.

There are more than 70,000 births in Ireland every year creating a ready source of stem cells which could be used for transplants and for research.

Mr Mac Gabhann has been in touch with MS Ireland and other advocacy groups.

Cord blood is an ethical source of stem cells which could be used in transplantation to help those with leukaemia, lymphoma and MS, he said.

A number of clinical trials are being carried out in the US into cord blood and MS.

In his proposal to YCYC, Mr Mac Gabhann proposed the establishment of a bank called the Uisneach Trust, to collect, process and store cord blood stem cells.

He estimated that within five years a bank of 5,000 units would be available in Ireland with the potential for 40 transplants each year.

Mr Mac Gabhann said that such a cord bank would increase the chances of a cure for many children and adults who have been unable to find a suitable marrow donor.

In his submission he said the bank would provide valuable research opportunities for the medical and scientific community.

“Some people hear stem cells and they go crazy, but there is a huge distinction between embryonic stem cells and bone marrow or cord blood cells,” he said.

“It is a very useful product and to think we are just throwing the stuff away.”