Canadian Blood Services’ Cord Blood Bank information for Cord Blood donation for biomedical research

Biomedical research on cord blood may increase our knowledge about blood stem cell transplantation and the processes for collection, manufacturing and storage of cord blood. Some researchers are studying stem cells from cord blood to determine or develop new treatments for diseases. Other researchers may use cord blood for research (not related to stem cells) that might lead to improvements in future medical care.

How do I consent to donate my baby’s cord blood for biomedical research under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program? 

You must mark the Research Opt-In box on the Permission to Collect form if you want your baby’s cord blood to be used for biomedical research. Otherwise your baby’s cord blood may be discarded.

Are there any risks if I donate my baby’s cord blood for biomedical research under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program?

There is no health risk to you or your baby if you donate your baby’s cord blood for biomedical research under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program. Canadian Blood Services will disclose only minimal information about you and your baby to researchers such as the date of collection, your baby’s gender and the criteria we used to determine that your baby’s cord blood was unsuitable for storage. Information that directly identifies you is replaced by a unique code. This way, the researchers will not know who donated the cord blood.

What kind of biomedical research will my baby’s cord blood be used for under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program?

Examples of cord blood biomedical research include:

• Improvements to current clinical practices that use cord blood
• Improvements to cord blood collection, manufacturing and storage
• Study of stem cell biology
• Discovery of other clinical and non-clinical uses of stem cells from cord blood
• Production of stem cell lines that could be maintained for many years and used for a variety of research purposes
• Development of drugs, medical and/or commercial products to treat human diseases

Canadian Blood Services must approve all research projects under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program. The Canadian Blood Services Research Ethics Board will also review all projects. In addition, researchers must receive ethics approval from their own institutions and, if applicable, other advisory groups who supervise research.

If you donate your baby’s cord blood, you cannot choose what kind of research or which research project your baby’s cord blood may be used for.

Find more information about research projects using donated cord blood under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program on the Canadian Blood Services website at www.blood.ca/researchcordblood.

What if I want to withdraw my consent for biomedical research under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program? 

Donating your baby’s cord blood is completely voluntary. You may withdraw your consent at any time. Call 1 888 2 DONATE (1-888-236-6283) and we will send you a form titled Withdrawal of Consent to Participate in the Canadian Blood Services’ Cord Blood Bank. Complete the form and return it to Canadian Blood Services.

Please note, most cord blood distributed to researchers under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program will be shipped within 48 hours of collection. If your baby’s cord blood has not already been used for biomedical research it will be discarded. If your baby’s cord blood has already been used for biomedical research under the Cord Blood Bank’s research program, the cord blood sample and research results may not be withdrawn.