How I treat: the selection and acquisition of unrelated cord blood grafts

Use of unrelated donor cord blood (CB) as an alternative stem cell source is increasing, and yet there is little information to guide transplant centers in the unique aspects of the search and selection of CB grafts. There is no mechanism to easily access the global inventory of CB units, nor is the product information provided by all banks standardized. To address these challenges, this manuscript reviews the logistics of the search, selection process, and acquisition of CB grafts as practiced by our center. Topics include who should be considered for a CB search, how to access the global CB inventory, and how to balance total nucleated cell dose and human leukocyte antigen match in unit selection. We discuss aspects of unit quality and other graft characteristics (processing methods, unit age, availability of attached segments, infectious disease, and hemoglobinopathy screening) to be considered. We incorporate these considerations into a unit selection algorithm, including how to select double-unit grafts. We also describe how we plan for unit shipment and the role of backup grafts. This review aims to provide a framework for CB unit selection and help transplantation centers perform efficient CB searches. (Blood. 2011;117(8):2332-2339)