And in its pipeline - another five more before the end of March.

SCBB is Singapore's first public cord blood bank aimed at building a national resource for Singaporeans of Chinese, Malay, Indian and Pan-Asian origins - usually unmet by international banks which usually caters to mainly Caucasians.

Cord blood, drawn from umbilical cords that would have been discarded after babies are delivered, is a rich source of immature cells with the potential to develop into different types of blood cells, which can be used effectively to replace diseased ones.

These stem cells, a viable alternative to bone marrow transplants, can be used to treat more than 70 diseases, such as leukaemia, lymphoma, immune diseases and genetic disorders.

Currently, SCBB has banked over 4,500 cord blood units. Its target is to bank 10,000 units over the next three years.

Dr William Hwang, SCBB's medical director, said: 'At least six people are diagnosed daily in Singapore with different types of blood-related diseases. Many of these patients will require a blood stem cell transplant in order to survive.'

Right now, close to 50 diseases - many of them rare - can be treated with cord blood transplants and the list is growing.

In Singapore, a patient who cannot find a match among his family members must hope for one from an unrelated donor.

At present, the likelihood of that happening is only about 10 to 20 per cent because most established public cord blood banks are in the West, where donors are mainly Caucasian.