The North has had umbilical cord blood bank

After 1 month of establishment, the first umbilical cord blood bank (MCR) in the North under the Children's Hospital has received more than 200 samples of cord blood stored.

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Liem, Director of Children's Hospital, said that MCR is a very valuable material source, after being cultured and differentiated into different types of cells will serve the treatment of diseases that need stem cell transplantation. Such as: myelosuppression, leukemia, thalassemia and many malignant diseases of the blood.

Previously, in Vietnam only two stem cell banks capable of collecting, processing and long-term storage of TBG from cord blood were Ho Chi Minh City's Blood Transfusion and Hematology Hospital and MekoStem Stem Cell Bank ( Both are in HCMC. Therefore, the MCR bank was established at Children's Hospital to help meet the needs of people in the North who have the purpose of storing MCR.

According to Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thanh Liem, the storage of MCR is to ensure in the future if the unfortunate owner of the disease needs to use stem cells for treatment, it can be used immediately. In addition, the baby's MCR can also be used for relatives if required.

The registration for keeping MCR must be done before the child is born. Accordingly, if there is a need, the mother needs to register at the MCR bank and be instructed about the procedures. By the time of labor labor is contacted and there will be a group of doctors, the bank's technique will take a sample of blood taken to the bank for processing and storage. The standard of blood samples is that pregnant women do not have hepatitis, HIV and blood-borne diseases.

MCR bank is expected to store about 2,000 MCR samples. The number of stored samples will increase gradually over the years, first of all to treat the keepers when needed.

Currently MCR Bank at Children's Hospital has received more than 200 archives with a cost of 1,500 USD / year. According to Mr. Liem, in addition to registration cases, the bank also accepts the MCR sample without charging the voluntary donors for treatment if there is a suitable patient.

Evaluation of cord blood stem cell storage, Associate Prof. Dr. Nguyen Anh Tri, Director of the Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, said that this is very meaningful for children in the future. 'When we send stem cells from your umbilical cord blood, or send your own stem cells into a storage bank, none of us want to use it. But no one can say anything about health, if unfortunately later get sick, the source of stem cells itself will be the end, is the most effective and effective treatment for each person ', Mr. Tri emphasized.

Because stem cells are cells that can differentiate into different cells in the body. Every time a body tissue is injured, lost due to aging or natural death . the stem cell will immediately "repair", replacing these cells. Currently in Vietnam, stem cells have been applied in many medical examination and treatment facilities, helping to effectively treat some pathologies in many areas such as corneal disease, heart disease, burns, hematology .