Cord blood banking? ?

Question

ok well i heard about this a little bit ago and i just wanted to get some information about it. im interested in knowing what exactly it is for like will they use it for research or store it away to help someone who needs it. if so what does it do. im planning on doing saving the blood because i heard some good things about it but i would like some more information. so if you have any tell me. if you have had it done or seen it done what do they do? isn't the blood in the cord usually go to the baby? if it does what can happen if it doesn't go to the baby if anything. stuff like that. web sites would be good to if you have any

thanks in advanced

Answer 1

Privatly banking is very very expensive.  2000 give or take down, and then several hundred every year.

Public donation is free to you, but there are restrictions of the blood they will take.

A private bank the blood will just sit there as long as you continue to pay the bill.  I think they currently will keep the blood for 20 years, but we dont know if it is actually viable that long.

If donated to the private bank, it will be used either in treatment or in research.

Cord blood is currently used in lieu of bone marrow in stem cell transplants.  It is used because even though it still has to be matched, it doesnt have to be as close of a match.  Stem cell transplants can currently treat leukemias, lymphomas, myleomas, and several non cancerous blood diseases.  There are trials using the transplant to treat most autoimmune diseases, and it can be used in conjunction with other organ transplants to give patients a chance to come off the anti rejection meds.  And the future possibilities are endless.  It is even plausable that the transplant could be the cure to aids.

The problem is that currently one unit of cord blood is on generally only enough to transplant a small child.  Anyone larger than a small child would need 2 units.  One baby, one unit.  So even if you did have the baby's cord blood, you would still need to find a second unit that was a match to use it in transplant.  Currently.  The future possibilities are endless though

Answer 2

I looked into it myself with my first. There is only a certain number of things that it can help/ cure. It has to be in the family. It is not like you can give it to your friend to help her/ him. They told me if I was in need of it it could go to me. Just like it could go to my hubby, or even the baby himeself for when he is older.

I was told that it is pricey. The bank that I was thinking of is about $2,000 + a year just to save it. I have seen some that are cheaper, but not by much.

I also had a good look at family medical history, and there is no need for us to save it since no one in our family has any of the illnesses/ disorders that were listed that cord blood could help. We are going to for go it with this baby as well.

I wish you the best of luck, and hope that whatever you chose works out. This is just my side............ I am not against it in fact I am for cord blood banking, but the price/ fact it would not help us made us chose not to do it.

: )

Answer 3

http://kidshealth.org/parent/pregnancy_n...

http://www.cordblood.com/

http://pediatrics.about.com/od/agesandst...

http://parentsguidecordblood.org/

http://www.lifebankusa.com/

hope this helps!!!

Answer 4

The cord blood isn't harvested until birth but arrangements have to be made in advance so that the banking people are there or they've at least sent the kit to the hosptial, doctor or you in advance. No, it's not used for research - it's your own for life. It can be used for a variety of things such as growing organs for your baby or subsequent babies (if they're a blood match) and it can be used to help children who develop childhood cancers as cord blood has stem cells that can be turned into anything one wants. It's NOT cheap by any means. It's about $4,000 to initally collect and store the blood and about $2,000 to $4,000 a year just to store it.