Umbilical cord banking is a fairly new issue that expectant parents need to think about. Advertising for cord blood banks make pregnant women think that they must save their baby’s cord blood. My husband and I have been talking about cord blood banking, since we are expecting our fourth baby. We wonder if, with four children, our chances of needing the blood are higher.
Cord blood banking is still experimental and controversial. Some sources, mainly cord blood banks, point out that cord blood contains stem cells. These cells don’t yet know their function and can be used to treat a variety of diseases, including leukemia and lymphoma. Since there is only one chance to bank cord blood, parents need to make this decision during pregnancy.
Banking umbilical cord blood is very expensive. You can expect to pay about $1500 when the blood is collected and a yearly storage fee of about $100. The cost of banking is often too high for many new parents.
In addition to the cost, parents may wonder about the likelihood that their baby or other family member will even need the blood in the first place. The chances are actually pretty slim that the baby or sibling will need it. About 30,000 people a year in the U.S. are diagnosed with a disease that would benefit from treatment with stem cells. Of course, this number may increase as technology grows.
Some scientists question whether stem cells would even benefit the baby later. In some cases of leukemia and genetic disorders, there is a risk that the stem cells carry the same disease and wouldn’t benefit. Other unanswered questions surround the effectiveness of cord blood banking. The industry isn’t regulated by the government and questions exist, such as how long the blood will be good after it is stored, if the collection procedures are adequate and if the stem cells are being processed correctly.
Another disadvantage is that a relatively small amount of material is collected from the umbilical cord. There are questions about whether the amount would be adequate for an adult. If the child or one of his siblings were to get ill during childhood, there would probably be enough stem cells. Depending on the treatment needed, it may not be enough in adulthood or for a parent.
Most banks have your doctor collect the blood from the umbilical cord in a syringe. Between one half and one cup of blood is typically collected. This is then sent to the lab, where a technician extracts the stem cells and gets them ready for freezing.
Another option is to donate your baby’s cord blood. The Red Cross has a public cord blood bank. It costs nothing to donate, but the blood isn’t kept just for your family. Anyone needing the stem cells could get them, if they were a match.
We are still undecided about cord blood banking. There seem to be good reasons to do it, and not to do it. We don’t have a history of cancer in the family, which seems like a reason not to spend the money. On the other hand, with four children, it sometimes seems that the stem cells would be insurance for all four of our kids. We still have a few months to decide.