Umbilical cord blood transplant patients are required to stay in Minneapolis for some time; 60 days for those receiving an umbilical cord blood transplant from a closely matched sibling, or 100 days for a transplant from an unrelated donor — that adds up to nearly 15 weeks, or four months.

This timeline shows how the time is spent:

Week 1 — Preconditioning therapy: This takes about a week and begins with a physical examination, a bone marrow examination and many blood tests to make sure the organs are in good condition. A consent form explains the entire procedure. Then chemotherapy with or without irradiation (depending on the disease) is given to kill any remaining diseased cells. Most healthy cells survive because they are not dividing as quickly as diseased cells, and radiation is lethal only to the most active cells. Antibiotics and anti-fungal drugs are given, too, to help the patient fight infections while his or her blood is being re-built.

Week 2 — Blood preparation: Cord blood collected at birth from a sibling or an unrelated donor and frozen in liquid nitrogen is thawed and washed to eliminate any preservatives. It is brought by courier from a storage facility in St. Paul to Minneapolis.

Week 2 -Transplant: 5 minutes: Liquid blood in a plastic bag is fed — "infused" — into the patient through a Hickman catheter inserted earlier through the chest wall into the heart. No pain medication is given because the patient feels no sensation.

Week 2 — Recovery: 2 to 4 weeks: It takes up to 2-4 weeks for the stem cells to repopulate the patient's bone marrow. During this time patients are extremely vulnerable to infection because most of their blood components have been killed by treatment and the new blood has not yet been built. Patients must stay in their hospital rooms. To stay healthy, patients receive more antibiotics and anti-rejection drugs at this time. Everyone entering the hospital room must wash hands before entering and be free of colds, flu or other infectious diseases.

Radiation and chemotherapy create sores in the mouth and dull the appetite. During this time, the patient receives intravenous nutrition until he or she is comfortable eating. Diarrhea can also accompany these treatments.

After week three, most patients are able to eat normal foods.

Anti-infection measures continue, and the patient is still isolated. Blood is checked daily to monitor the progress at which the hematopoietic stem cells are working and the patient is checked for signs — such as a skin rash — of graft-vs.-host disease.

Patients feel generally well and talk with family members, watch movies, play games or take part in activities within their room via closed-circuit televisions.

Week 4 — Discharge to a local recovery residence: Patients who have responded sufficiently well to treatment may leave their rooms for the first time in four weeks. They are still extremely vulnerable to infection and must therefore wear masks.

They may live in a temporary home nearby, such as the nearby Ronald McDonald House, where infection-control measures are in place. They come in to an outpatient clinic, where physicians monitor their progress daily.

Weeks 5 — 15 — Preparation for release, patients live with their family: Children attend school inside the recovery residence facility. They resume as many normal activities as possible. When their blood counts are within normal ranges and there is no major complication, they are discharged and may go home.

Going Home — Aftercare: While patients will need regular physical check-ups and will be checked for signs of recurring cancer and graft versus host disease, anti-rejection drugs and antibiotics will need to be taken. But the biggest hurdle has been successfully overcome, and they can attend regular schools, ride bikes, swim and participate in other normal activities.