Cord blood or “placental” blood is retrieved from the umbilical cord from babies no more than fifteen minutes after birth. In cases where there is a genetic history of certain forms of cancer and other diseases, cord blood storage may be a godsend. But is cord blood storage a necessary procedure or just another hoax to bilk Americans out of their hard earned money?
Before you pay for storage for your family, there are a few facts that you should consider. Before selecting a facility, ask whether they provide cell count information to ensure that the sample is clinically useful. Find out if the cord blood facility has published their bank’s data. A reputable facility will have that information available. Find out the volume that the cord blood facility has produced. Approximately 70 cc of blood is normal, but 85 cc is better.
Find out whether the facility is for “autologous” or for family use. Autologous use only allows the child in which the stem blood has been removed to use the cord blood. In this case, family members will not be eligible to use the stem cells.
Make sure that the cord blood storage facility has been accredited with the American Association of Blood Banks.
Check the method of extraction. Some facilities use “blood bag gravity,” which is easier for the doctor, but can limit cell collection if tissue plugs the needle. Seek facilities that use syringes.
Ask about the success in the past. Only 50 percent of blood bag gravity devices have been proven to have collected enough stem cells to make them useful clinically.
Find out if the company is reputable and has little reason to go out of business. Ask how many transplants the storage facility has successfully completed. A score of at least 80 percent of successful transplants should be required. And yes, a higher percentage is certainly better.
Research has shown that cord blood has been beneficial to people who need a bone marrow transplant, but according to the American Association of Blood Banks, blood cells can only be frozen for up to ten years without ill effects.
Cord blood facilities also accept donations, especially from people who are not Caucasians. Tissue traits that are used to match a cord blood unit with a patient are inherited; a patient's most likely match will be cord blood donated by someone of the same heritage. American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Black and African American, Hispanic and Latino, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and multiple-race patients face a greater challenge in finding a match than do Caucasian patients.
Private cord blood facilities can offer assistance to individuals that are in immediate need of a bone marrow transplant. Unless you are in that situation, a donation to a facility may be beneficial to another human being. Cord blood storage facilities do not charge for donations and are of no medical harm to you or your baby. Privacy is always respected in a reputable company.
By R. S. Wagner