Umbilical cord blood

Umbilical cord blood is obtained when a mother donates her infant's Umbilical Cord and Placenta after birth. Cord blood has a higher concentration of HSC than is normally found in adult blood. However, the small quantity of blood obtained from an Umbilical Cord (typically about 50 mL) makes it more suitable for transplantation into small children than into adults. Newer techniques using ex-vivo expansion of cord blood units or the use of two cord blood units from different donors allow cord blood transplants to be used in adults.

Cord blood can be harvested from the Umbilical Cord of a child being born after preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for human leucocyte antigen (HLA) matching (see PGD for HLA matching) in order to donate to an ill sibling requiring HSCT.