[Results of the activity of Jose Carreras Memorial Cord Blood Bank in Warsaw]. / Podsumowanie dzialalnosci Banku Krwi Pepowinowej im. Jose Carrerasa w Warszawie.

Following the first successful cord blood transplantation in 1988, several hundreds of patients were treated using same protocol. The main limitation of the wide use of cord blood as a source of haematopoietic cells is the number of available units of this tissue. To make possible selection of HLA-matched cells for individual patient, several thousands of cord blood samples must be collected and stored in liquid nitrogen. The network of cooperating cord blood banks with join accessible database is necessary. In this paper the activity of Jose Carreras memorial Cord Blood Bank established in Warsaw was described. Since the middle of January the collection of cord blood units for clinical purposes was started. During first three months 80 samples of cord blood was collected. Collections were obtained from normal full-term deliveries after the third stage of labour. For the banking the collection over 60 ml or contain over 4 x 10(8) of mononuclear cells were qualified. Whole blood samples and plasma samples obtained following volume reduction were used for HLA and bacteriology tests. After volume reduction the number of nucleated cells (WBC), mononuclear cells (MNC) and hematopoietic cells (CD34+) were evaluated. After processing the cord blood samples were frozen using control freezer and were stored in liquid nitrogen storage tanks. According to results of cord blood transplantation hundred percent of banked samples are suitable for recipients weighing 10 kg and only 7 percent for these weighing 50 kg.

Organization of the cord blood bank in Warsaw, Poland: current status and future prospects.

The preliminary results of the currently established cord blood bank in Warsaw, Poland have been reported. 163 cord blood samples (mean volume 102 ml) were collected during/or after delivery of the placenta. Average cell numbers per sample were as follows: WBC 13.4 x 10(8); BFU-E 5.7 x 10(4); GM-CFC 4.1 x 10(5); CD34+ 4.5 x 10(6). The quantities and quality of collected cells are suitable for their use for clinical transplantation.