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Blood stem cells from 56 pediatric cancer patients who were stored in a long-term freezer at the Los Angeles Children's Hospital for use in future treatments were destroyed when temperature sensors failed to Beginning of the month.
The hospital also acknowledged sending the notification letters directly to the patients, some of whom were children, rather than to the parents.
In a statement released Wednesday, the hospital said the cells had been collected for routine reasons and that the patients' health had not been endangered by the loss of equipment.
Stem cells are very young cells that can grow into other types of cells. Blood stem cells, in particular, develop into different types of blood cells.
But why are these cells frozen and stored for some cancer patients?
Dr. Ludovico Guarini, a hematologist and pediatric oncologist at Maimonides Children's Hospital in Brooklyn, New York, most commonly collects blood stem cells from pediatric patients with cancer. Guarini is not associated with the Los Angeles Children's Hospital.
Solid tumors are all mass-forming tumors, such as cancers of the brain or liver, compared to liquid tumors, such as those in the blood or lymphatic system.
Preserving stem cells allows doctors to administer higher doses of chemotherapy or radiation therapy, which can be toxic to blood cells, Guarini told NBC News. After treatment, stem cell reinjection allows patients to reconstitute the blood cells that have been removed. Blood stem cells can also sometimes be used to replace damaged bone marrow.
Obtaining stem cells can be daunting. The cells are extracted from the bone marrow, which often requires anesthesia, or, if they are extracted directly from the blood, the bone marrow must be stimulated to release the stem cells into the circulation.
For this reason, some stem cells are often put aside and stored for eventual future use, in case the patient returns for cancer.
"The lost stem cells are replaceable depending on the circumstances," said Guarini. Some patients may need to simply repeat the collection process. But, for others, if the cancer recurs and is aggressive, an external donor may be needed.
The Los Angeles Children's Hospital said in a statement that the freezer had been replaced and that the maintenance schedule and sensor monitoring systems had been upgraded.
They are also reviewing their notification process in order to avoid sending such information directly to pediatric patients in the future.
The hospital said it would provide support to affected families if additional care is needed in the future.
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