How do stem cells work?

Infusion Today, stem cells - from bone marrow, peripheral blood or cord blood - are mainly used in allogeneic transplantations to treat blood disorders, such as leukaemia. These cells are injected or infused into the patient, where they move through the blood stream and gradually settle in the bone marrow (a process called 'engraftment') where they grow, and help to rebuild the body's ability to produce new blood cells.

Making the most of how stem cells work is vital:

bone marrow transplants, routine since the 1960s, are a kind of stem cell treatment
more than 7,000 cord blood stem cell transplants have taken place worldwide
younger people with blood disorders need healthy, donated cells, as their own stem cells are likely to carry the illness that is being treated
as research progresses autologous transplants – using your own, stored cells – may offer new potential for regenerative medicine to be used as a treatment for certain illnesses and conditions.

Treatments using umbilical cord stem cells, mainly in allogeneic transplantations, are already being used successfully today. The potential of these cells, however, could mean that many more illnesses and conditions are treated with them in the future, in autologous and allogeneic transplantations.

How are stem cells collected? >