Who Can Bank Umbilical Cord Blood ?

Acording to current statistics only three percent of new parents are currently opting to bank their newborn child’s umbilical cord blood. The main reason for this appears to be down to the cost involved. It can currently cost from $1500 to $2000 for the initial collection and processing of the umbilical cord blood, plus annual storage fees which range from $50 to $150. If you have the financial means and can afford to bank you child’s umbilical cord blood then you should definitely be considering it. The potential benefits are practically without limit. There are even some people claiming that cord blood stem cells could be the answer to immortality. Of course this is just hype but it isn’t totally untrue. There are definitely real implications that stem cell research will lead to the eradication of some diseases.

Donating umbilical cord blood for no cost

Anybody can choose to donate umbilical cord blood following the birth of their child for no cost. The umbilical cord blood stem cells are then placed in a public cord blood bank that can be used by anyone. This is in some ways similar to an organ bank however it is significantly more effective as stem cells do not need to be an exact genetic match for them to be used. The question is if public cord blood banks can be used to benefit so many people why would a person decide to use a private cord blood bank ? The primary reason a family might want to store their own child’s cord blood privately would be if they already have a family member who has or had cancer or another disease that could be treated using a stem cell transplant, or because they want to ensure the stem cells are available to them in the future.

Umbilical Cord Blood and The U.S. Stem Cell Research and Therapeutic Act

The Stem Cell Research and Therapeutic Act was enacted to create a national umbilical cord blood program, which provides federal funding for the collection, storage of cord blood to be used in blood cell transplants. The program holds a national inventory of 150,000 cord blood units for public use and maintains a registry network which is linked to the national marrow donor registry, which is administered by the National Marrow Donor Program.