The history of cord blood banking is fascinating, because the service did not exist on a widespread basis until a few decades ago. Below, we introduce key historical events that have affected cord blood and cord tissue storage, both in the U.S. and worldwide.
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Cord Blood and Tissue Banking: 14 Terms to Define
Since the first stem cell transplant occurred more than 65 years ago (1957), there has been a nearly exponential increase in stem cell transplants, and in late 2012, the millionth stem cell transplant occurred, a landmark event in stem cell medicine. It is clear that the stem cells contained within cord blood banking now have the potential to improve and save lives. Since the first cord blood transplant was performed in 1988, stem cells derived from umbilical blood have been used in more than 40,000 transplants worldwide. [Read more…]
History of Cord Blood and Cord Tissue Banking
The history of cord blood and tissue banking dates back to the early 1990’s when three private cord blood banks were formed within the United States. These banks were Cord Blood Registry, Cryo-Cell, and Viacord, all of which are AABB accredited banks. Shortly thereafter, cord blood banks began forming in leading healthcare markets worldwide.
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How the Cord Blood and Tissue Market is Changing
The global cord blood and tissue banking market is consolidating, driven by the emergence of holding companies and aggressive M&A activity. This is creating risks for cord blood market participants, as well as new opportunities.
Serious threats to the industry include:
- Low rates of stored cord blood utilization
- Utilization of bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cells as alternative sources of stem cells for HSCT
- Growing prevalence of haploidentical transplantation
- Expensive transplant procedures, ranging from $200-300K
- Difficulty educating Obstetricians about the future value of cellular therapies
- Low rates of market penetration
- Low rates of cord blood awareness among expectant parents
What is Cord Tissue Banking?
Cord tissue banking is the processing and storage of a newborn’s umbilical cord tissue or the components contains, such as Wharton’s jelly. Wharton’s jelly is a thick, gelatinous substance present within the human umbilical cord that contains a range of important cell types, such as mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), fibroblasts and macrophages.
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