Australia’s public cord blood network – AusCord – has released its 1000th cord blood unit for transplantation through the Fight Cancer Foundation’s BMDI Cord Blood Bank at Melbourne’s Royal Children’s Hospital/Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.
This important milestone is a joint effort of AusCord, the national network of umbilical cord blood banks and cord blood collection centres. The network collects and banks cord blood from voluntary donors for anonymous use by patients requiring a stem cell transplant. Cord blood transplants are used to treat leukaemia and a variety of genetic, immunological and blood disorders.
Early cord blood banking was driven by Australian pioneers such as Dr Karin Tiedemann, Medical Director of the BMDI Cord Blood Bank in Melbourne. The BMDI Cord Blood Bank was established by the Fight Cancer Foundation (formerly the Bone Marrow Donor Institute) in partnership with the Royal Children’s Hospital and the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute.
The release of 1000 cord blood units for transplantation has provided hope and a second chance of life for 908 patients in Australia and overseas (some patients receive more than one cord bood unit). This milestone was reached by the release of the 414th cord blood unit from the Fight Cancer Foundation’s BMDI Cord Blood Bank.
To read about a remarkable set of twins boys who underwent cord blood transplants, please click here