Stored blood stem cells from the umbilical cord of a young girl at birth were used to treat her older brother’s beta-thalassemia major.
The blood stem cells were stored at Royan Cord Blood Bank and helped save the girl’s 6-year-old brother who’d been suffering from beta-thalassemia major.
The successful transplantation took place at Tehran’s Shariati Hospital some months ago, Mehr News Agency reported.
The outcome of the transplant is highly satisfactory and the hematological values of the patient are completely normal it was found after current evaluation.
Umbilical cord blood is blood that remains in the placenta and the attached umbilical cord after childbirth. Cord blood contains stem cells, which can be used to treat hematopoietic and genetic disorders. Royan Cord Blood Bank was founded in 2005 to help with sustainable healthcare in Iran. It is comprised of a large group of immunologists, hematologists and oncologists.
