The King Abdulaziz Medical City in Riyadh is getting ready to open a stem cell bank harvested from the umbilical cord. The procedure will be done in laboratories and specially equipped rooms to draw the cells from umbilical cord blood and separate them using a special device. Then they will be stored in labs for a period from 15 to 20 years after examining them and making sure they are free of contagious and genetic diseases. In addition, a team will be prepared for coordinating, marketing and research within this field.
Dr. Mohammed al Jumah, the Executive Director of King Abdullah International Research Center said that the stem cells harvested can be used in treating a lot of diseases such as cancer, leukemia, diabetes and other diseases that might affect the fetus later on.
Moreover, Dr Iman Al-Mosa'ad the Bank Director said that nearly six thousand births take place at King Abdulaziz Medical City and that this bank will try to convince the mothers to donate umbilical cord blood to be stored so it can be used when needed whether by the child or some other patient that needs it as there is a percentage of 1:5 compatibility with stem cells. Also, damaged cells that aren’t used can be useful in research and studies by scientists and researchers to a find treatment for incurable and chronic diseases.