Advertisement Cord blood is a sample of blood taken from a newborn baby's umbilical cord. It is a rich source of hematopoietic stem cells, which are precursors to blood cells.

 As such, they have been used to treat certain diseases of the blood and immune system. The next largest group is inherited diseases (of red blood cells, the immune system and certain metabolic abnormalities.) Patients with lymphoma, myelodysplasia and severe aplastic anemia have also been successfully transplanted with cord blood.[citation needed] Cord blood is collected from the umbilical cord vein attached to the placenta after the umbilical cord has been detached from the newborn.[1] Cord blood is collected because it contains stem cells, including hematopoietic cells, which can be used to treat hematopoietic and genetic disorders. One unit of cord blood generally lacks stem cells in a quantity sufficient to treat an adult patient. The placenta is a much better source of stem cells since it contains up to ten times more than cord blood.[2] Some placental blood may be returned to the neonatal circulation if the umbilical cord is not prematurely clamped.[3] According to Eileen K. Hutton, PhD, and Eman S. Hassan, MBBch, cord clamping should be delayed a minimum of two minutes to prevent anemia over the first three months of life and enriching iron stores and ferritin levels for as long as six months. (Ref. "Late vs Early Clamping of the Umbilical Cord in Full-term Neonates," JAMA, March 21, 2007) If the umbilical cord is not clamped, and it is not during an extended-delayed cord clamping protocol, a physiological postnatal occlusion occurs upon interaction with cold air, when the internal gelatinous substance, called Wharton's jelly, swells around the umbilical artery and veins. Advertisement