First FDA Clearance of Sterile Field Cord Blood Collection Bag ViaCell and Pall Announce Collaborative Agreement
Biotechnology company ViaCell and Pall Corporation, which specializes in purification and filtration, announced that they had received the first clearance from the FDA for a cord blood collection bag suitable for use in a sterile field. Although the two company’s collaborated on the development of the bags, ViaCell will attain exclusive rights to the use of the bags and will begin including them in their cord blood collection kits. The bags will make it easier for families and health care providers to collect umbilical cord blood from newborns born vaginally or by c-section. Using sterile collection methods is necessary for babies born by cesarean section. Because many c-sections are not planned, ViaCell will include the bags in all of their collection kits so that parents who choose to bank their child’s umbilical cord blood can do so regardless of how they give birth. PRNewsWire.comApril 9, 2006
Stem Cell Transplant Improves Stroke Damage
American researchers have found that just one dose of adult stem cells can help improve neurological damage after a stroke. Investigators at the Medical College of Georgia and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia gave animals with loss of mobility, as well as other functions similar to those experienced by humans after a stroke, a dose of 200,000 to 400,000 stem cells, which they injected directly into the animals brain. Researchers used the recently discovered multipotent adult progenitor cells (MAPCs). Researchers noted an improvement of at least 25% in both motor and neurological performance in animals that were treated compared to animals in the control group. Co-author of the study, Dr. David Hess, said: “In humans, the findings hopefully will translate to incremental but important recovery advances.” Hindu.comApril 5, 2006
Unique Cord Blood Transplant Saves Woman’s Life
A Colorado woman has been the first person in the state to benefit from an umbilical cord blood transplant using two different donors. Sheila Gannon was pregnant when she learned that she had leukemia and had only a 20% chance of surviving. In order to begin chemotherapy, Gannon gave birth two weeks early to son, Sawyer. When it was time for Gannon to receive a stem cell transplant, she ran into some problems. First, a bone marrow match could not be found. When it was decided that the woman try umbilical cord blood instead, she was rejected by the centers since her leukemia was not completely in remission. Eventually, though, Dr. Peter McSweeney of the Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers made the decision to use two different cord blood donors in Gannon. Says Mc Sweeney: “We’ve tested her bone marrow twice since the transplant was performed one month and 2 months and on both occasions, we’ve found no evidence of leukemia.” Currently, Gannon is undergoing the difficult task of learning to walk again, a result of her having to spend weeks in bed, but she says she is just grateful to be alive. Kathy Walsh, CBS4Denver.com
