Cord blood and tissue banking hold promise - "Cord blood and tissue banking are two different processes where either the umbilical cord blood or the umbilical cord itself are gathered after the delivery of a newborn and saved. In cord blood banking, excess blood within the umbilical cord and placenta is extracted from the cord immediately after delivery. This blood is then collected in a cord blood kit, transported to a banking site and stored for potential later use.

Tissue banking is the collection of approximately 4 to 8 centimeters of umbilical cord after delivery. The cord is placed in the tissue collection kit and transported similarly to a lab or bank for storage and preservation. Tissue banking is a more recent development in the field, whereas cord blood banking has been widely practiced since the late 1980s."

Umbilical Cord Stem Cells Converted Into Brain Support Cells -  For the first time ever, stem cells from umbilical cords have been converted into other types of cells, which may eventually lead to new treatment options for spinal cord injuries and multiple sclerosis, among other nervous system diseases.

Novel Way to Improve Outcomes from Umbilical Cord Blood Transplants -  "A new method to boost the number of immune cells in umbilical cord blood prior to cord blood transplants for cancer patients appears to lead to a quicker rebuilding of a new immune system in the patient's body than with a conventional cord blood transplant procedure, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania that is being presented at the 53rd American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting. The technique also paves the way for the development of a way to provide these transplant patients with a salvage therapy from the same donor if their cancer returns"

Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Hematopoietic ...