Cord Blood Cheat Sheet 2026
The 30 highest-yield Cord Blood facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.
- What is secondary graft failure after cord blood transplantation? → Loss of donor engraftment after initial successful engraftment
- A physician recommends cord blood banking to a family with a child who has leukemia. Which banking type is most appropriate? → Directed donation or private banking for a sibling match
- Umbilical cord blood banking for a sibling who has a known genetic disorder is called: → Directed allogeneic banking
- What is the structure that serves as a transient organ to provide substance exchange between the mother and fetus. → placenta
- Which cord blood banking scenario qualifies for free public banking in most US states? → Voluntary donation of the unit with no reserved family access
- Which factor most directly affects the time to engraftment after a cord blood transplant? → The total nucleated cell dose infused per kilogram of recipient body weight
- What is immune reconstitution and why is it critical after cord blood transplantation? → The gradual recovery of a functional immune system from donor stem cells after transplant
- What use does amniotic fluid serve? → acts as cushion to support and protect from mechanical shock
- True or False: Cord 's Blood Disorders of the immune system and blood can be treated with stem cells. → True
- Which storage temperature must cord blood units be maintained at in cryogenic tanks? → -196°C (liquid nitrogen)
- Which organ contains the fetus' blood vessels? → umbilical cord
- Which organization maintains the largest international registry that includes cord blood units from banks worldwide? → World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA)
- What is the typical turnaround time from initiating a search to receiving a cord blood unit from a US public bank for a transplant? → 3–5 business days for an urgent shipment
- What is the minimum HLA match typically required for a cord blood unit to be considered for transplantation? → 4/6 match
- Which colony-forming unit assay is used to assess the functional potency of hematopoietic progenitors in a cord blood unit? → CFU-GM assay
- Which infectious complication is particularly concerning during the period of delayed immune reconstitution after cord blood transplant? → Cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation
- Which HLA class presents intracellular peptides primarily to CD8+ cytotoxic T cells? → Class I (HLA-A, B, C)
- Which condition describes a cord insertion at the very edge of the placenta? → Marginal (battledore) insertion
- What does 'viable CD34+ cell recovery' measure when a cord blood unit is thawed before transplant? → The proportion of CD34+ cells still alive and functional after cryopreservation
- What term describes an abnormally large amount of Wharton's jelly in the umbilical cord? → Cord edema
- Before the blood is drawn, what happens to the umbilical cord? → clamped, cut, and cleaned
- Which of the following best describes the blood flow direction in the umbilical arteries? → From fetus to placenta (deoxygenated)
- What happens to umbilical cord stem cells if the collected volume is too small to meet banking thresholds? → The unit is typically discarded or donated to a public bank at reduced threshold
- What is chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) and how does it differ from acute GVHD? → cGVHD occurs after 100 days and can mimic autoimmune diseases affecting multiple organs
- Which condition is cord blood transplantation most commonly used to treat? → Hematologic malignancies such as leukemia and lymphoma
- How are stem cells maintained? → In liquid nitrogen
- Which surface marker is most commonly used to identify and quantify hematopoietic stem cells in cord blood? → CD34+
- Which characteristic of cord blood makes it more immunologically tolerant than bone marrow for transplantation? → More naive, immature T-lymphocytes
- What is the average volume of cord blood collected from a single birth? → 60–80 mL
- On which chromosome is the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), which encodes HLA genes, located? → Chromosome 6
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