LifeCord Information
 Established
in 1998 in Gainesville, Fla., LifeCord was the first allogeneic cord bank established
in the Southeastern United States. Accredited by the aaBB.
Joint venture between the University
of Florida, Shands
at UF and LifeSouth
Community Blood Centers. Working together, these three entities are
able to bring their individual expertise to ensure a safe and reliable cord
blood unit for patient transplant.
The Shands at UF Blood and Marrow Transplant Program has performed more than
1,300 blood and marrow transplants including the first pediatric and adult umbilical
cord blood transplants in Florida, and Florida’s first umbilical cord blood
transplant to treat sickle cell anemia.
Medical
Direction
John R. Wingard, MD, serves as LifeCord’s medical director. A member
of the University of Florida’s College of Medicine, he is a professor
of Hematology and Oncology, the medical director of the Shands at UF Bone
Marrow Transplant Program and the UF Shands Cancer Center associate director
of clinical and translational research.
 Donor Selection
LifeCord assesses the donor’s medical history and risk behaviors prior
to making a cord blood unit available for transplant. A cord blood mother must
complete the National Marrow Donor Program’s background and risk assessment
questionnaires. These questionnaires provide information about the mother’s
health history and risk factors, as well as the baby’s genetic history
(maternal and paternal).
Infectious Disease Testing
LifeCord tests all mothers for the following disease markers: HIV 1/2; HIV
Nucleic Acid Testing; HCV Nucleic Acid Testing; Hepatitis B Surface Antigen;
Hepatitis C Virus; Hepatitis B Virus; HTLV – I/II; and Syphilis.
Genetic
Screening
The following genetic screenings are made available with
the cord blood unit profile: Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH) Galactosemia
Hypothyroidism (congenital) Phenylketonuria (PKU) Sickle Cell Disease and
Hemoglobinopathies.
Cord Preservation & Storage
The cryopreservation laboratory
at Shands at UF has been operating since 1981 and plays a major role in the
success of our program. Cord cells in DMSO solution, are frozen at a rate of
-1C per minute until they reach a temperature of -40C. When the temperature
reaches -40C, the rate of cooling is increased to -12C per minute until a temperature
of -120C is reached. The cryopreserved bag is then transferred to a liquid
nitrogen cryostorage holding tank where they remain viable for at least 10
years.
Cord Banking at LifeSouth
LifeCord is a program of LifeSouth
Community Blood Centers developed in cooperation with the University
of Florida College of Medicine and the Shands
at UF Stem Cell Laboratory. LifeCord is a community cord blood bank and
has been accepted by the FDA as an Investigational New Drug research program.
Cord blood collections are performed by LifeSouth staff and physicians and
nurses trained on LifeCord procedures.
In north central Florida, physicians from the University of Florida College
of Medicine perform cord blood transplants at Shands at UF. UF physicians transplant
cord blood into patients for whom other treatments have not worked. Cord blood
donations are searchable alongside bone marrow donors. Physicians seek the
best stem cell match for any given patient.
Currently, collections are limited to North
Florida Regional Medical Center, Shands at AGH, Shands
at UF, Shands
at LakeShore, The Birthing Center, The Patient's Corner, as well as the Baptist
South and Baptist
East Hospitals in Montgomery. Expectant mothers delivering
at a LifeCord participating facility may request information on registering
as donors by calling LifeSouth at (352) 224-1737.
Those seeking cord blood banks in other areas may contact the National
Marrow Donor Program at 1-800-MARROW-2.
| 
