Yesterday, David Lammy MP, met with representatives of The Anthony Nolan Trust, a charity dedicated to providing lifesaving donors for patients in need of a bone marrow transplant.

Since 1974, The Anthony Nolan Trust has operated the UK’s most successful bone marrow register and is in the process of establishing a Cord Blood Bank to complement the register and to provide a unique national transplant and research resource.

Umbilical cord blood, the child’s blood retained in the placenta following birth, is normally treated as a waste product despite being an ethical and feasible source of naturally produced stem cells for clinical transplantation and use in research. The Cord Blood Bank programme will seek to take advantage of this as well as placing the UK at the forefront of cord stem cell development and research.

Valerie Pakenham-Keady of The Anthony Nolan Trust, said:

“I would like to thank David Lammy MP for supporting The Anthony Nolan Trust Cord Blood Bank Programme. Traditionally about 50% of collected cord bloods have been thrown away as clinically unusable, despite their potential use in research in the fields of cell therapy and regenerative medicine. Our Cord Blood Bank will build on our core skills, making new therapies available for patients and providing extra support to clinicians and researchers working in the field of stem cell use, including transplantation.”

David Lammy MP said:

“I am delighted to support the pioneering work of The Anthony Nolan Trust. The aims of their proposed Cord Blood Bank Programme are commendable and will make a real difference to the lives of patients affected by diseases such as leukaemia as well as placing the UK at the forefront of stem cell research”.

Background:

o The Anthony Nolan Trust takes back lives from leukaemia by providing lifesaving donors for patients in need of a bone marrow transplant.
 
o The Trust’s national database of bone marrow donors has given around 6,000 children and adults a chance of new life since 1974.  

o The Trust manages and recruits new donors to the UK's most successful bone marrow register as well as undertaking vital research leading to improvements in the effectiveness and safety of bone marrow transplants. Fewer than 30 per cent of patients who need bone marrow transplants are able to find a compatible donor within their own families. The rest rely on the generosity of strangers who have volunteered to donate bone marrow to anyone in need.

o The Anthony Nolan Trust has internationally recognised expertise in tissue typing, donor selection, cell provision and associated research.. It is the international hub for searches among 8 million potential bone marrow donors

o The Cord Blood Bank programme will complement the established Bone Marrow Register, making new therapies available for patients and providing extra support to clinicians and researchers working in the field of stem cell use, including transplantation.

o Through the Anthony Nolan Research Institute, the Trust focuses on research to improve the outcome of stem cell transplants and the use of immune system modulation as a form of therapy.