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Why are doctors turning to cord blood instead of bone marrow?
Easier to match -- higher survival
Bone marrow is difficult to match between the donor and recipient because a "perfect match" is usually required. Cord blood immune cells, however, are less mature than in bone marrow and can be successfully used even when there is only a half-match. This means there is more opportunity for transplants between family members when cord blood is stored. Some studies have shown that overall survival rates for related transplants are more than double that of transplants from unrelated donors.
Immediate availability
Banking cord blood ensures that these stem cells can be immediately available if they are needed for treatment. Early treatment of many illnesses can minimize disease progression. According to researchers at Duke University, cord blood transplants could provide possible survival that is unlikely with the more time consuming process of unrelated marrow donation.
Less GVHD
Overall, patients who receive cord blood transplants from a relative experience significantly less Graft vs. Host Disease (GVHD), a transplant rejection that is the leading cause of death in stem cell transplant patients. According to one study, the three-year cumulative incidence of chronic GVHD was 6% for matched siblings who received cord blood transplants versus 15% for matched siblings who received bone marrow transplants.
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