Arizona Hospitals Encourage Cord Blood Banking
There are several blood diseases that affect minorities most. For example, Thalassemia is common among those with Indian descent, while Sickle Cell Anemia affects African Americans. Because there are diseases that affect minorities more than others, there should be a larger registry of ethnic cord blood donors.
Taking note of this shortage, many hospitals across the United States have launched initiatives to encourage ethnic minorities to bank their children's cord blood. Arizona hospitals have most recently taken up this cause, as a new project seeks to reduce the shortage of genetically diverse cord blood.
The initiative has been launched by Arizona Biomedical Research Commission and was funded by the state lottery. A federal grant has also helped to make the establishment of the program possible.
As part of the program, ethnic mothers who are giving birth at participating hospitals are informed about cord blood banking. Should they decide to bank their child's cord blood, there is no cost imposed to do so.
The program was started this summer and has seen significant success. On June 29, Phoenix Baptist hospital collected its first cord blood donation as part of the program, and has collected 25 more since then.
In coming months, two more hospitals will launch the same program: St. Joseph's Hospital and Maricopa Medical Centre. Staff at these hospitals hope to see similar success, encouraging ethnic mothers to contribute to the national registry of cord blood donors.