Cord Blood Transplantation in the East Mediterranean Region

There are multiple centers performing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) in the Eastern Mediterranean region (EM). Cultural and logistical issues differ from those in the USA or Western Europe. The Eastern Mediterranean Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EMBMT) group was thus established recently to report the HCT activity in the WHO-defined Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMRO), and to encourage collaboration among the centers. Two centers, one in Saudi Arabia and one in Iran, have expertise in umbilical cord blood transplantation.