We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress hp
Sign In
Advertise with Us

Download Mobile App




Cord Blood Transplants May Outperform Matched Sibling Donors

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 16 Jun 2020
When a cancer patient needs a bone marrow transplant, there are four common donor sources: A matched related donor (sibling), a matched unrelated donor (from a donor database), a half-matched donor, or umbilical cord blood.

There are advantages and disadvantages to each approach, but consensus has generally ranked a matched sibling first, followed by a matched unrelated donor, with cord blood and half-matched donors reserved for patients without either of the first two options.

Hematologists at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus (Aurora, CO, USA) compared outcomes among adult matched related donor (MRD) patients undergoing peripheral blood stem cell transplantation and adult patients undergoing double unit cord blood transplantation (CBT), between 2010 and 2017. More...
A total of 190 CBT patients were compared with 123 MRD patients. Median follow-up was 896 days (range, 169-3,350) among surviving CBT patients and 1,262 days (range, 249-3,327) among surviving MRD patients. For MRD donors, median infused cells were 6.07 × 106 CD34/kg (range, 2.99-9.66).

The scientists reported that in the comparison of 190 patients receiving cord-blood transplants with 123 patients receiving transplants from the "gold standard" of matched sibling donors showed no difference in survival outcomes between these two approaches, with significantly fewer complications due to chronic graft-versus-host disease in patients receiving transplants from cord blood. In addition to showing a decrease in the chance of graft-versus-host disease, which develops when a transplanted blood system attacks a patient's tissues, the study shows a slightly lower rate of relapse in these patients undergoing transplant with cord blood.

Jonathan A. Gutman, MD, CU Cancer Center investigator and director of the allogeneic stem cell transplantation program and senior author of the study, said, “It turns out that for adults, it's very hard to find a single cord blood unit that meets the parameters we know need to be met in terms of size. To overcome this barrier, we often use two units from different sources. We think there are important advantages of cord blood, especially with respect to graft-versus-host disease. Previously, we've taken a position recommending cord blood over matched unrelated donors, and now we show that cord blood may even out-compete the gold standard of matched sibling donors.” The study was published on May 22, 2020 in the journal Blood Advances.

Related Links:
University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus


New
Gold Member
Collection and Transport System
PurSafe Plus®
Collection and Transport System
PurSafe Plus®
New
Gram-Negative Blood Culture Assay
LIAISON PLEX Gram-Negative Blood Culture Assay
Silver Member
Rapid Test Reader
DIA5000
Read the full article by registering today, it's FREE! It's Free!
Register now for FREE to LabMedica.com and get access to news and events that shape the world of Clinical Laboratory Medicine.
  • Free digital version edition of LabMedica International sent by email on regular basis
  • Free print version of LabMedica International magazine (available only outside USA and Canada).
  • Free and unlimited access to back issues of LabMedica International in digital format
  • Free LabMedica International Newsletter sent every week containing the latest news
  • Free breaking news sent via email
  • Free access to Events Calendar
  • Free access to LinkXpress new product services
  • REGISTRATION IS FREE AND EASY!
Click here to Register








Channels

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel
Image: Left is the original cell image and right is same cell image zoomed in and rendered in the special imaging software (Photo courtesy of FIU)

Brain Inflammation Biomarker Detects Alzheimer’s Years Before Symptoms Appear

Alzheimer’s disease affects millions globally, but patients are often diagnosed only after memory loss and other symptoms appear, when brain damage is already extensive. Detecting the disease much earlier... Read more

Immunology

view channel
Image: The VENTANA HER2 (4B5) test is now CE-IVDR approved (Photo courtesy of Roche)

Companion Diagnostic Test Identifies HER2-Ultralow Breast Cancer and Biliary Tract Cancer Patients

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in Europe, with more than 564,000 new cases and 145,000 deaths annually. Metastatic breast cancer is rising in younger populations and remains the leading cause... Read more

Pathology

view channel
Image: An adult fibrosarcoma case report has shown the importance of early diagnosis and targeted therapy (Photo courtesy of Sultana and Sailaja/Oncoscience)

Accurate Pathological Analysis Improves Treatment Outcomes for Adult Fibrosarcoma

Adult fibrosarcoma is a rare and highly aggressive malignancy that develops in connective tissue and often affects the limbs, trunk, or head and neck region. Diagnosis is complex because tumors can mimic... Read more

Technology

view channel
Image: Conceptual design of the CORAL capsule for microbial sampling in the small intestine (H. Mohammed et al., Device (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.device.2025.100904)

Coral-Inspired Capsule Samples Hidden Bacteria from Small Intestine

The gut microbiome has been linked to conditions ranging from immune disorders to mental health, yet conventional stool tests often fail to capture bacterial populations in the small intestine.... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2025 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.