What you Need to Know About Cord Blood Banking

What you Need to Know About Cord Blood Banking

Cord blood is a main source of stem cells. Bone marrow is also a good source of stem cells and bone marrow transplants have become increasingly useful for treatment in stem cell related problems. 

Cord blood is blood that is in the umbilical cord after the baby is born and it contains stem cells used to save people’s lives. The umbilical cord blood is processed and stored in a cord blood bank for any future transplant of stem cells.

The cord blood is tested first before being cryopreserved at the cord blood bank. It has to meet specific requirements of the blood bank to be acceptable. If the umbilical cord blood meets the eligibility requirements, it is then stored in a special bag and cryopreserved at the the cord blood bank.

Cord blood banks can provide public storage or private storage. The public cord blood banks use their stored cord blood to donate to hospitals and doctors. Donors are matched with cord blood according to the medical history of the family.

Extracting the cord blood from the umbilical cord is not painful to either the mother or the baby. The cord blood is taken after the umbilical cord is cut, and it is important to use this valuable tissue rather than throw it away. This same cord blood helps cure deadly diseases like cancer, leukemia, brain tumors, plasma cell disorders, renal cell carcinoma, phagocyte disorders, histiocytic disorders, congenital immune system disorders and other stem cell disorders.

Saving the cord blood from the baby’s umbilical cord can also help to save your own family because no one knows what will happen in the future. The umbilical cord blood is a perfect match to your baby and up to twenty five percent for all siblings.

If your plan is to keep the cord blood for your child, you must research the requirements of what is needed to privately bank your stem cells. You also need to know how the cord blood is stored. Make sure that the blood bank is associated with the American Association of Blood Banks. Checking on the financial outlook of the blood bank you select is also important as this says a lot about whether your cord blood will be safe or not.