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Texas Cord Blood Bank Announces 50th Patient Match

Texans Saving Lives as more than 5400 units of cord blood banked

SAN ANTONIO (September 30, 2009) – The Texas Cord Blood Bank has matched 50 patients with cord blood donations since the bank began listings its donations with the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) in 2006. In addition to the cord blood matches, more than 5,400 units of cord blood have been banked in the program and are ready when needed for transplant. Cord blood units have been provided to a range of patients from infancy to 64-years-old, suffering from leukemia, lymphoma and other diseases treated with cord blood transplants.

“We always knew this program was about saving lives,” said Dr. Norman Kalmin, President/CEO and Medical Director of the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center. “We began the cord blood program believing that the selfless donation of cord blood from Texas families would prove beneficial for many people. Cord blood is saving the lives of adults and children, and the science behind cord blood is advancing rapidly. We are excited about the possibilities.”

In order for a patient and donor to be compatible, certain tissue traits from both donor and patient must match. Although tissue traits are generally inherited, nearly 70 percent of patients do not have a donor match in their own family. The patient’s physician then turns to a vast network of donors complied in the national marrow and cord blood registries to begin a worldwide search for a match.

Since cord blood collections began at the Texas Cord Blood Bank in June 2005, more than 18,000 donations have been received, of which approximately 30 percent have met medical criteria to be banked, bringing the total number of banked units to more than 5,400. This percentage is significantly higher than the national average. The units are registered with the NMDP, which has more than 50,000 cord blood units listed nationally.

“The Texas Cord Blood Bank has been a source of hope for many families, and we look forward to growing the program and saving even more lives,” said Mary Beth Fisk, Director of the Texas Cord Blood Bank and STBTC Vice President of Tissue Services and Development.

There are currently twelve Texas Cord Blood Bank donor sites within the state of Texas with capabilities of accepting cord blood donations. Partner hospitals include: Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, Northeast, Southeast and North Central Baptist hospitals in San Antonio, Valley Baptist Medical Center-Harlingen and Valley Baptist Medical Center-Brownsville in the Rio Grande Valley, Doctors Hospital in Edinburg, Medical City-Dallas hospital, Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston, Midland Memorial Hospital in Midland, McKenna Hospital in New Braunfels and Providence Hospital in Waco.

The Texas Cord Blood Bank was established as a non-profit program by the Texas legislature in 2001. Elizabeth Ames Jones, currently a Texas Railroad Commissioner, was instrumental while serving in the Texas House in crafting legislation that provided the initial state funding for the cord blood bank. She said, "It is wonderful to see how Texans have become such an integral part of the life-saving link for the more than 35,000 children and adults who can benefit from a cord blood transplant,"

Umbilical cord blood, which is normally discarded after the birth of a baby, is rich in blood-making cells that can be used as an alternative to bone marrow transplants to treat cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma, disorders of the blood-making system such as sickle-cell anemia and severe immune-system disorders. There is no cost associated with donating, and each cord blood donation aids in building the state-wide cord blood bank that captures the vast ethnic diversity of Texans. Ethnicity plays a key role in finding a suitable genetic match for patients.

“I am pleased to see Texans are making a positive impact for those in need through the Texas Cord Blood Bank,” said Texas Governor Rick Perry. “I encourage prospective parents across the state to continue talking to their doctors about donating cord blood because what better way to celebrate the birth of a child than by helping others celebrate a rebirth of health and hope for tomorrow.”

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About the Texas Cord Blood Bank
Specially approved by the Texas legislature and the first in the State, the Texas Cord Blood Bank – a division of the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center – is a source of ethnically diverse, life-saving umbilical cord blood. With more than 30,000 people currently waiting for a transplant to be found, donor families across Texas have turned the birth of one child – their child – into hope for families around the world. For more information, please visit www.bloodntissue.org.