Banking Cord Blood – FAQs About Saving Your Baby’s Cord Blood Stem Cells
What are my options for saving my baby's cord blood?
There are two types of banks; family banks (for one's own family's use) and public donor banks (unrelated or non-family use i.e. "public"). Every parent has the option of saving cord blood for their baby and family, while only a small number of people may be able to donate their baby's cord blood stem cells.
Cord Blood Registry is the world's most experienced and trusted cord blood stem cell bank. We have established the gold standard in cord blood banking and have stored thousands of client samples.
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Why do families choose to collect and store their baby's cord blood?
A- Tens of thousands of families have chosen to save their baby's cord blood stem cells with Cord Blood Registry. Most of CBR's clients have no family history of disease, but see the current and future potential of their newborn's cord blood stem cells as a biological resource.
Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity - Only at Birth
At an increasing rate, expectant parents are storing cord blood for their families, not only as a potential life-saving resource for current uses of stem cells, but also for their future potential. Some families have more defined risk factors, but most often, parents bank for the security in knowing the health benefits stem cells may someday offer their children, themselves, or other family members.
Recent clinical studies support the unique suitability of cord blood stem cells for a number of developing technologies. Doctors are especially enthusiastic about the potential use of cord blood stem cells in the emerging fields of gene therapy and cellular repair. When you bank your baby's cord blood stem cells, you are saving what may be a key component to potential future medical treatments and cures.
Additional considerations and unique birthing circumstances include:
Family History
Cord blood banking is a prudent choice if you or your spouse/partner have any family history of a disease that is treatable with stem cells, such as leukemia, lymphoma, or myeloma. It is important to remember, however, that for many cancers and diseases, the causes are unknown and they occur even when there is no family history of the disease.
Ethnic or Mixed Ethnicity
Ethnic minorities and families of mixed ethnicity have greater difficulty finding stem cell donors when needed. Many genetic diseases such as sickle cell anemia and thalassemia are more common in certain ethnic populations. Both of these diseases have been successfully treated with stem cells from cord blood.
Newborn Adoption
Families preparing to adopt a newborn choose cord blood banking because, if ever needed, the cord blood may be the only available genetic source of stem cells for the adopted baby. In addition, depending upon the terms of the adoption, complete family medical histories are not always available.
In Vitro Pregnancies
Couples using fertility treatments bank cord blood because they face the possibility of not having another opportunity to secure a genetically related sample of cord blood stem cells for their child.
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Should I save cord blood for all of my children?
Just as each child is genetically unique, so is that child's cord blood stem cell sample. Parents save cord blood for each of their children to ensure that an exact genetic match is available. In addition, it increases the likelihood of a useful match between family members. The stem cells in a sibling's cord blood are up to twice as likely to be useful for transplant compared to stem cells from the same sibling's bone marrow. In the case of identical twins, it is still important to save as many stem cells as possible, and it is recommended that cord blood be collected for both babies. In general, the collection volume per baby in multiple births is smaller, so collecting for both babies helps ensure an adequate stem cell yield for transplantation if ever needed. Generally, each child's cord blood is banked separately even in the case of identical twins.
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How do I donate my baby's cord blood to a public donor bank?
Unfortunately, cord blood collection for public donation can only be accommodated at specified hospitals in limited regional locations. This is primarily due to funding constraints of many public banks. In addition, a lot of families are ineligible for donation for a variety of reasons including family health history, maternal exposure to viruses, and international travel. Hopefully in the future we will see funding sources step forward and help out with significant funding required.
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Shouldn't I choose a cord blood bank that is close to my home?
It is not important for a cord blood bank to be close to your home. The safety and viability of your baby's stem cells are far more important than the proximity of the storage location. The most important thing for your family is to make sure that your baby's cord blood collection yields the greatest number of stem cells possible and that the cells are viable and available if they are ever needed for transplant. It is also important for the bank's laboratory and storage facility to be in a location that is not subject to major environmental disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes.
Cord Blood Registry's collection and processing techniques have been published in leading medical journals and have been proven in over 71 transplants to date. Should they be needed, your stem cells can quickly be shipped to any medical center in the world.
Finally, since most families will require long-term storage, you will want to choose a cord blood bank that is financially stable and will be around in the future to ensure your baby's stem cells will be available if needed.
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I'm planning to adopt. How does that change the process?
Cord Blood Registry sends a contract to you as well as the birth mother. Both parties must authorize the contracts before a kit can be sent. Many times the privacy of both parties is a requirement. Cord Blood Registry has participated in hundreds of adoption collections for our clients and we are very experienced with confidentiality and other unique issues surrounding the adoption process as it relates to cord blood collection and storage.
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What if there is someone in my family who is sick now and needs my child's cord blood?
Our Designated Transplant Program(SM) (DTP) provides cord blood collection, processing, and storage at no cost to families with a medical need. Qualifying families may apply for the DTP with a letter from their hematologist or oncologist recommending cord blood banking as a treatment option for the family.
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