Sheffield Hospitals to run pioneering stem cell collection centre

In collaboration with NHS Blood and Transplant, the FT has won a contract with national charity Anthony Nolan to run the centre.

NHSBT already provides stem cell harvests from its unit based in Sheffield Teaching Hospitals. As part of this new collaboration, donors selected for stem cell collection by Anthony Nolan will now be able to donate in Sheffield rather than having to travel to London.

The trust’s Blood and Marrow Transplant Director John Snowden said: “This contract will help us create a first class bone marrow stem cell collection centre which will form the basis of life saving treatments for patients all over the world.”

Ailsa Ogilvie, Head of Operations at Anthony Nolan, said their partnership with NHSBT and Sheffield Teaching Hospitals highlighted their commitment to the welfare of donors.

She said: “This new collection centre will allow us to offer a choice of location to our donors, making donation as convenient as possible for them. We hope that this will not only build on our reputation for providing a world class service, but will also allow us to provide more lifesaving transplants for people with blood cancer.”