Fewer than 3% of Italian couples choose to donate cord blood. Data collected in the 2024 Umbilical Cord Banking in Italy Report by the National Blood Centre, released ahead of World Cord Blood Day, celebrated annually on 15 November, show that this altruistic act is still not widespread across the country. In 2024, 8,189 donations were collected, an increase compared to the 7,456 recorded in 2023, but still a small number relative to the total number of births in facilities equipped for collection, which amounted to 282,815. In other words, only 2.9% of couples or single mothers who had the opportunity decided to donate cord blood
Donating cord blood is a safe procedure for both the mother and the newborn and allows the collection of a type of blood rich in stem cells, which is precisely why it is at the centre of established life-saving therapies for the treatment of numerous serious congenital and acquired blood disorders. More recently, many innovative research lines have emerged exploring potential alternative uses for units that are unsuitable for transplantation. Such uses include the production of red blood cells for the treatment of anaemia in preterm infants, or the use of gels derived from cord blood platelets, whose regenerative properties have a wide range of applications in dermatology and ophthalmology.
Professor Luciana Teofili, director of the Italian National Blood Centre, comments: ‘Cord blood is a valuable resource for the health of many patients, and even more people could benefit in the future, once new lines of research will translate into established therapies. Yet, only a few couples or single mothers currently choose to carry out this act, which has such a significant altruistic value.’
Italian Cord Blood Network
The ITCBN (Italian Cord Blood Network) consists of 18 cord blood banks located in public hospitals or private hospitals affiliated with the National Health Service, distributed across 13 Italian regions. They are connected to 270 maternity units equipped for altruistic cord blood collection, 40 of which operate in regions without a cord blood bank. The full list of facilities can be consulted at this link.
The legislation allows:
- Collection of cord blood donated for charitable purposes.
- Collection of cord blood dedicated to a newborn with a condition present at birth or identified during the prenatal period, or for dedicated use by a relative with a current or previous condition that can be treated with a haematopoietic stem cell transplant.
- Collection of dedicated cord blood for families at risk of having children affected by genetically determined diseases for which there is proven scientific evidence supporting the use of cord blood stem cells.
- Collection of cord blood for dedicated autologous use within clinical trials—approved in accordance with current regulations—aimed at gathering scientific evidence for the possible use of cord blood in specific medical conditions.
The legislation prohibits:
- Storage for exclusive autologous use in the absence of the above-mentioned conditions.
- The institution of private cord blood banks within the national territory.
- Any forms of advertising related to private cord blood banks.
It is, however, permitted to collect cord blood for personal use and to export it to private facilities outside Italian territory in accordance with the rules established by specific legislation, even though there is no solid scientific evidence supporting the usefulness of this form of storage. This practice limits the benefits and availability of cord blood for altruistic use, despite there being very few cases and indications for its application.
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To read the report click on the following link.