World cord blood day and cord blood days

World Cord Blood Day

November 15 is the time to  commemorate the first stem cell transplant from cord blood (it took place in 1988), but most importantly to raise public awareness of the benefits of collecting and banking stem cells from cord blood and umbilical cord. Educational campaigns run concurrently with meetings of scientists from around the world. 

Cord blood days across the country

PBKM for the 7th time. is organizing a social action in 11 hospitals nationwide. It is related to the cord blood day, which is celebrated worldwide on the 15th. November. The days of cord blood in Poland, meanwhile, run from November 1 to 10, with the main purpose of donating it to the public and educating about the properties of stem cells, their benefits and possible uses. This year, cord blood for public purposes will be donated in 9 cities: Lublin, Warsaw, Krakow, Bialystok, Rzeszow, Sieradz, Lodz, Poznan and Wroclaw. The cord blood collected at this time is donated to the public for use by POLTRANSPLANT. Since 2011, 4,300 units of blood have already been obtained.

Public bank vs. family bank

There are both public and family banks around the world. The essence of their work is mentioned by virtually all scientific societies, among others. American Academy of Pediatrics or the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. At the same time, they point out that in order to take full advantage of the properties of cord blood-derived stem cells, both public and family banking should be developed. By donating cord blood for public purposes, parents should take into account that they automatically relinquish rights to the material, and the banked cells can benefit those in need not only in Poland, but also abroad. In the case of the family bank, on the other hand, they are assured that the cells will be usable only by the child from whom they were taken and his or her next of kin.

Some facts about cord blood

Cord blood days also aim to make the public aware of the facts about stem cells. Before making any decision, it’s a good idea to learn scientific evidence and facts, rather than relying on unproven news reproduced on the Internet. Cord blood has been successfully used as a standard treatment in 80. disease entities, among others. Hematological or metabolic. In recent years, there have been an increasing number of reports on new possibilities for the use of stem cells in the treatment of autism and cerebral palsy, for example. In Poland, cord blood is transplanted in 7 cities. Standard transplants are reimbursed by the National Health Service. The undoubted advantage of cord blood over bone marrow is that these cells do not age and are available for use virtually “off the shelf” without the need to search for a tissue-compatible donor.

Cord blood days allow you to share the priceless gift of cord blood with others. Let’s remember that we have the opportunity to collect this material only once in our lives-at birth. Otherwise, the properties of stem cells are irretrievably lost, and no person in need can benefit from them.