According to the Public Relations Office of Royan Cord Blood Bank, Elham, a 12-year-old girl from Isfahan, was diagnosed in January 2015 with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL). After three rounds of chemotherapy with no response, she was treated using her sister’s cord blood stem cells, which had been stored at Royan Cord Blood Bank.
Elham’s father said:
“We learned about Elham’s illness on January 13, 2015, at which time her mother was pregnant. After three rounds of chemotherapy and lack of response, the doctors decided to proceed with a stem cell transplant. Since Elham was our only child, no matching bone marrow donor was found among our family or relatives. After the doctor found out that my wife was pregnant, they advised us to definitely store the newborn’s cord blood so it could be used for transplant if possible.”
He continued:
“After the birth of our second child, Fatemeh, we stored her cord blood at Royan Cord Blood Bank. Ten days later, HLA testing showed, by God’s grace, that Fatemeh’s cord blood was a match for Elham. However, because Elham weighed about 60 kilograms, the doctors said the stem cells were insufficient. The transplant committee rejected the sample three times, but eventually it was decided to use an additional cord blood unit along with Fatemeh’s sample — known as a double cord transplant. The transplant was performed in September 2015 at Shariati Hospital in Tehran by Dr. Hamidieh.”
Elham’s father stated:
“It was God’s grace that while Elham was ill, my wife was pregnant with Fatemeh. She had had two previous miscarriages. Everything happened so that our daughter could recover. After the transplant, the stem cells had not started working for a few days. During a home ceremony, we received a call from the hospital that night saying the cells had activated and increased. The prayers of the people and the efforts of the medical staff and Royan Cord Blood Bank helped us greatly.”
He added:
“The transplant results showed the positive impact of Fatemeh’s cord blood in Elham’s body. If things continue this way, no further special treatment will be needed, and Elham can attend school this year. The transplant was a miracle for me.”
Elham, now healthy after three rounds of chemotherapy and the stem cell transplant, shared her outlook on the future:
“This year, I was supposed to start seventh grade, but since I took a one-year academic leave, I will start sixth grade in September. I am doing my best to continue my studies in hematology.”
She said about her treatment with her sister’s cord blood stem cells:
“I never imagined science had progressed this much — it was like a miracle to me.”
Dr. Morteza Zarrabi, CEO of Royan Cord Blood Bank, also commented on Fatemeh’s cord blood stem cell transplant to her older sister:
“This father and mother’s decision to store their child’s cord blood is commendable. Royan Cord Blood Bank is committed to storing newborns’ cord blood samples at the highest quality. This transplant is the result of the dedicated teamwork of the blood collection specialists, laboratory experts, admission staff, counselors, and, most importantly, the transplant team at Shariati Hospital — all of whom share in this success.”
He emphasized:
“With the good transplant facilities currently being established in various hospitals, more patients will be able to benefit from the stored cord blood stem cells.”