Can an umbilical cord blood bank receive donations from a mother with cancer?

A colleague in Portugal asks if it is permissible for an umbilical cord blood bank to accept, store and/or process for transplantation a sample obtained from a placenta of a mother who has cancer.

A colleague in the United States with experience in quality programs for umbilical cord blood banks comments that such a practice would generally not be permitted at her umbilical cord blood bank. She comments that according to the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) requirements, a cord blood bank should consider deferring a collection of umbilical cord blood from a mother who has a history of any type of cancer except perhaps completely excised local skin cancer (basal cell or squamous cell), or treated carcinoma in situ of the uterine cervix. However, a history of cancer that required chemotherapy or radiation therapy, including localized radiation therapy would be cause for deferral.

Editors' note: The discussion, Risk of transfusion of blood products collected from donors who develop cancer also seems germane to the present discussion.

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