cord blood testing | why is cord blood banked

Here are 5 Things You Need to Know About Cord Blood Before You Deliver Your Baby according to @TodaysMama #cordblood #cordbloodbanking #cordbloodregistry #newborn #stemcell… via @todaysmama
I am currently 38 years old and I would like to have my blood and it’s stem cells harvested via peripheral blood draw to be stored in definitely. Do you offer this service? If so, how can I arrange for my family?
Because of the invasive procedure required to obtain the bone marrow, scientist continued to look for a better source, which eventually lead to the discovery of similar stem cells in cord blood in 1978. Cord blood was used in its first transplant in 1988, and cord blood has since been shown to be more advantageous than other means of acquiring similar stem cells and immune system cells. This is because umbilical cord blood can be considered naïve and immature compared to other sources. Cord blood has not been exposed to disease or environmental pollutants, and it is more accepting of foreign cells. In this case, inexperience makes it stronger.
Bone marrow and similar sources often requires an invasive, surgical procedure and one’s own stem cells may already have become diseased, which means the patient will have to find matching stem cells from another family member or unrelated donor. This will increase the risk of GvHD. In addition, finding an unrelated matched donor can be difficult, and once a match is ascertained, it may take valuable weeks, even months, to retrieve. Learn more about why cord blood is preferred to the next best source, bone marrow.
There are some diseases on the list (like neuroblastoma cancer) where a child could use his or her own cord blood. However, most of the diseases on the proven treatment list are inherited genetic diseases. Typically, a child with a genetic disease would require a cord blood unit from a sibling or an unrelated donor. 
And as Victor and Tracey Dones learned, a child’s own cord blood can’t always be used to treat him, even when he’s young. “Childhood leukemia is one of the diseases private banks like to play up, but most kids with leukemia are cured with chemotherapy alone. If a transplant is needed, we wouldn’t use a child’s tainted cord blood,” Dr. Kurtzberg says.
In fact, the AAP does encourage parents to keep their child’s cord blood if a family member has already been diagnosed with a stem-cell-treatable disease. But a family won’t have to foot the bill: The Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute, in California, will bank a baby’s cord blood for free if a family member needs it at the time of the baby’s birth. Some private banks, such as Cord Blood Registry, Cryo-Cell, and ViaCord, have similar programs.
/en/public-bankingM.D. Anderson hospital has the largest stem cell transplantation program in the world, and in April 2005 they established a public cord blood bank that is accredited under the international FACT/Netcord standards.
Similar to transplantation, the main disadvantage is the limited number of cells that can be procured from a single umbilical cord.  Different ways of growing and multiplying HSCs in culture are currently being investigated.  Once this barrier is overcome, HSCs could be used to create “universal donor” stem cells as well as specific types of red or white blood cells.  Immunologic rejection is a possibility, as with any stem cell transplant.  HSCs that are genetically modified are susceptible to cancerous formation and may not migrate (home) to the appropriate tissue and actively divide.  The longevity of cord blood HSCs is also unknown.
If clients need to use the cord blood stem cells stored with CBR for transplantation and the cells fail to engraft, clients receive a full refund of all fees paid to CBR for cord blood services plus an additional $50,000.
Yes, stem cells can be used on the donor following chemo and radiation to repair the bone marrow. For a full list of treatments, please visit :
Cord blood contains mesenchymal stem cells but is much more abundant in hematopoietic stem cells. Cord tissue, on the other hand, contains some hematopoietic stem cells but is much richer in mesenchymal stem cells. Cord tissue, or Wharton’s jelly, is the protective layer that covers the umbilical cord’s vein and other vessels. Its MSCs can become a host of cells including those found in the nervous system, sensory organs, circulatory tissues, skin, bone, cartilage, and more. MSCs are currently undergoing clinical trials for sports injuries, heart and kidney disease, ALS, wound healing and autoimmune disease. As with cord blood, cord tissue is easily collected at the type of birth and holds great potential in regenerative medicine. Learn more about cord tissue banking here.
* Annual storage fees will be charged automatically to the credit/debit card on file, on or around your baby’s birthday, unless you’ve chosen a prepay option and are subject to change until they are paid.
Cord blood collection is a completely painless procedure that does not interfere with the birth or with mother-and-child bonding following the delivery. There is no risk to either the mother or baby. Cord blood collection rarely requires Blood Center staff to be present during the baby’s delivery. There is no cost to you for donating.
Umbilical cord blood contains haematopoietic (blood) stem cells. These cells are able to make the different types of cell in the blood – red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Haematopoietic stem cells, purified from bone marrow or blood, have long been used in stem cell treatments for leukaemia, blood and bone marrow disorders, cancer (when chemotherapy is used) and immune deficiencies.
Your baby isn’t the only one who may benefit from having access to preserved newborn stem cells. The cells can potentially be used by siblings and parents, too. In many cord blood treatments, stem cells from a matched family member are preferred.

4 Replies to “cord blood testing | why is cord blood banked”

  1. While donating cord blood is honorable, there is a lot people do not know about the public option. Most public cord blood banks have a limited number of collection sites, and they only retain a small number of collections because of volume and other criteria that must be met. Once cord blood is donated, it is highly unlikely that the donation can ever be attained by the donor or his or her family if the need arises. In addition, it may be hard to find another viable match from what is publically available. While donating is free, retreiving a cord blood sample from a public cord blood bank is not and pales in comparison to the overall cost of privately banking cord blood. These are just some of the reasons why privately banking cord blood may be a better option for some families.
    Cord blood banking is not always cheap. It’s completely free to donate blood to a public cord blood bank, but private banks charge $1,400 to $2,300 for collecting, testing, and registering, plus an annual $95 to $125 storing fee.

  2. There is no cost associated with public cord blood banking, but you do give up your rights to your baby’s stem cells at the time of donation. The public cord blood bank owns the donation. If your child or another family member needs a transplant in the future, there is no guarantee you would have access to your baby’s cord blood.
    CBR is committed to advancing the science of newborn stem cells. We’ve awarded a grant to the Cord Blood Association Foundation to help fund a multi-center clinical trial researching the use of cord blood for children with autism and cerebral palsy.…

    The umbilical cord is a rich source of two main types of stem cells: cord blood stem cells and cord tissue stem cells. Through the science of cord blood and cord tissue banking, these stem cells can help nurture life, long after your baby’s birth.

    StemCyte is a global cord blood therapeutics company.  StemCyte participates in the US network of public cord blood banks operated by Be The Match. In addition, StemCyte operates the National Cord Blood Bank of Taiwan, whose units are also listed with Be The Match.
    Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared in the Volume 16, Number 1, Spring 2009 issue of Dignitas, the Center’s quarterly publication. Subscriptions to Dignitas are available to CBHD Members. To learn more about the benefits of becoming a member click here.
    It would be possible for a healthy child’s cord blood to be used to treat a sibling with leukemia, but the banks’ literature doesn’t spell out that distinction. In the last 10 years, almost all of the approximately 70 cord-blood transplants that have used privately stored blood were given to relatives with preexisting conditions, not to the donors themselves.

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