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You know, this has always been an interesting concept to me. I wonder if this is true...I've heard that if you keep the umbilical cord attached to the baby after birth for like 20 or 30 minutes, that all the nutrients and stuff will flow to the baby, and they will no longer need cord blood banking because they have all the good stuff in their blood stream??? Does anyone know if this is true?? Also, any hospitals that actually would allow you to do this?
When I was researching cord blood banking, I found that only a very small percentage of children will actually benefit from private cord blood banking. We just don't have the technology to get the full benefits, at this time. Also, if I remember right, a lot of private companies market the use for childhood lukemia, but pre-cancerous cells are found in the baby from birth, so the cord blood would already be useless.
Some people donate to public banks instead, meaning that your baby's stem cells could be used for anyone that is a match, and you may get free or discounted services if your baby ever needed it. I didn't go very far into it, though, because I found out at that point, that my hospital does not support any cord blood banking because of our rural location. So my advice would be to call your hospital and find out if they support banking, and if so, which companies they've worked with before or which ones they prefer.
@MrsSl82be: I don't think that's entirely true. There are some benefits to delaying cutting the cord. I don't fully remember from my research, but it has to do with the baby getting the rest of the iron it needs and reduced anemia and blood clotting issues. But I believe most places just delay cutting until the cord stops pulsing; by 20-30 minutes after the baby's birth, a lot of mothers have already delivered the placenta, so I'm not sure how staying attached to a delivered placenta would help... Many hospitals allow delayed cutting, but you have to specify that you want it. Many homebirths and birthing centers do it without asking, though
It doesn't mean the baby will never need a stem cell transplant, though. That's still a (small) possibility whether the cord cutting is delayed or not.
ETA: I'm certainly not a medical professional, by any means, and my comments are all based off of the research I did like a year and a half ago. So always remember to talk to your doctor and ask his/her opinion before making a final decision on these things. Because I'm a random internet stranger and you probably can't trust me, lol. :)
@Mrs. Spring: haha! Yeah, all my research was done online, so like I said, I have no idea how true it really is. I just know that cord banking is expensive, so I wonder just how worth it it really is.
I'm thinking about it, but I'm not sure. I think I have to let my doctor kno next month, so I have a few weeks.
Here's a good article about private cord blood banking. It's generally what I remember from my initial research, i.e. we don't really have the technology for private cord blood banking to be worth the cost at this point. It also give some information about public banks, if anyone is interested in following that route.
http://www.babycenter.com/0_private-cord-blood-banking-is-it-for-you_1369773.bc
We thought about it. My husband works for a blood bank and talked to one of the doctors there, he said that it's probably just not worth it. Even if we wanted to, we just can't afford it right now (just bought a new house and obviously having a baby) anyway.
@MrsSl82be: I dont think thats the case. The cord blood is used further down the line to possibly treat conditions that may arise, and because it contains bot differentiated and undifferentiated stem cells that can be used to grow other types of cells if needed. I was also told (and dont quote me on this, but its what I heard from a medical professional) that a majority of the time, the person ends up needing or using cord blood that is from the general bank and not actually THEIR OWN cord blood. If thats the case, Id rather donate it to a bank and hope that a match arises if we need it in the future (heaven forbid.)
@KellyV: I think this is true because, if I remember right, there usually aren't enough stem cells in one cord for an adult in need. So they have to add stem cells from additional donations to have enough for the treatment. Also, with certain conditions (like leukemia or something that is present at birth) you can't use your own stem cells anyway since your stem cells contain the disease you need treatment for. (If that makes sense.)
@Mrs. Spring: exactly. Thats what it was (the leukemia example) but I couldnt think of it.
When we have kids, we're planning on donating the cord blood. All we need to do is research where!
I haven't really looked into it because we're still a little ways off from TTC but I wouldn't bank it privately. If it's available (like @Mrs. Spring:, we're rather rural) donating it to a public bank might be something we would do though.
This is kind of funny because I just started researching this this morning and was going to ask the same question here. Anyway, I found this website and it is INCREDIBLE if you're trying to understand cord blood banking or donation.
It's unbiased and was created by a NASA scientist mom who lost her child to cancer after going through a bone marrow transplant, and with the birth of 2 subsequent children found there wasn't much solid information out there on cord blood banking, which she was interested in after losing her first child. So, she quit her job, and decided to devote her life to getting solid information out there on cord blood banking and donation.
I donated to the Hawaii Cord Blood Bank. There was a plethora of flyers, posted info at the hospital and baby Expo. I was also asked at various appts if we considered doing it. I'm an organ donor so it just aligned with my values to donate. The setup forms were easy and the people who work/volunteer there are super sweet.
Anyway, it did take a little longer after the delivery to collect the blood ( I want to say 5 minutes but I actually have no idea) and they did say I had an extra large volume they collected. They also called me in the hospital (asked if it was a good time) and asked me about 20 minutes of followup specific, personal questions about my lifestyle (sex, drugs and all that) to categorize the blood. All in all, I thought it was worth it to make a contribution in this way, even if it's just a limited possibility of use. I would be so grateful if my child or someone else I loved, was in need one day.
If anyone's children are bi/multiracial or bi/multicultural, you should read this article about the problems of finding matches for children from different backgrounds. I had never thought of this aspect until I read the post, and because we are a Scottish/German-Korean couple, we need to be considering this for our children.
http://hapamama.com/2011/04/why-multiracials-need-bone-marrow-donors/
@bamm: Interesting that you posted that link. I just learned the same thing, and my baby will be biracial. So, for parents of biracial children who are considering cord blood banking, it's important to consider that with a public bank, you may not end up with your child's blood should you need it. To me, that helps to justify the cost of private banking.
@bamm: Good point. Our daughter represents 8 races so it's going to be super hard to find a match unless it's family.
I unfortunately know more about this subject than I would like as my mother has had to have two stem cell transplants, one from a donor. Her doctors, who are leading experts in the area, told me not to private bank our son's cord blood as there are virtually no instances where you use cord blood for same baby, like what Mrs. Spring said. cord blood is used as a backup in most instances I know about - meaning doctors prefer a donor of adult stem cells, but can use cord blood as a backup (and most adults would require the cord blood of 2 babies, 1 is not enough). The only real reason to private bank is if there is some future discovery that would make them valuable and you or your family have a need for it.
Even with my family history, we donated to a public bank, where there is a greater likilhood it will be used (today, most of the time people look for a donor FIRST and if that fails, cord blood is a second choice). We have access to that cord blood if we ever need it and it is still available.
That multiracial article is freaking me out. That said, when the time comes to have kids, I still think we will go the public route. A lot of the private cord blood banks revolt me because I feel that they are making money hand over fist by preying on people's anxieties and glossing over the fact that more often than not banking their baby's blood privately will not help.
Thanks for posting this! I've been getting all sorts of flyers on this topic and all of these tips and links have helped!
My husband and I considered it but ended up deciding against it. I would consider it for a second baby if our first had medical issues that could benefit from the banking but if baby girl stays heathy as can be we will not.
I donated... There are previous theads where I talk about actual numbers and the likelihood of actually being able to use the cord blood. I think less than 100 people have ever used banked cord blood.
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If you're pregnant, are you planning on banking your baby's cord blood? If so, which company do you plan on using, and why?
If you've already banked your baby's cord blood, which company did you use, and why?
Many thanks!