Pros and Cons of Banking Cord Blood
Many parents choose to bank cord blood from their newborn child
to try to protect their future health. This practice is becoming
more and more popular, especially in recent years, as the baby's
umbilical cord blood contains stem cells, which have been a
recent focus of the news media. Stem cells are cells that lack
any predestination, meaning they can be used for anything. A
stem cell can become a nerve cell, blood cell, bone cell, or
anything in between. Instead of discarded cord blood in the
delivery room, as was practiced in the past, many parents now
make the investment to bank cord blood for the future. As an
alternative to storing your child's cord blood, many parents
also choose to donate the cord blood to a cord blood registry or
for research purposes in an effort to cure diseases and better
understand the workings of the human body.
When making the decision to bank cord blood, consider weighing
the following pros and cons provided by the informative Web site
Should You Bank Cord
Blood in order to make a clear, well-informed choice:
Pros:
Donation Solutions: In the event of your child--or any other
children you may currently have or will have in the
future--needs a transplant, the cord blood will be well within
your reach. This is especially important for children of some
races, as finding a proper match can be more difficult and
depend greatly upon location. Furthermore, matches for critical
aspects like bone marrow are a great deal more difficult without
having cord blood on hand.
Treatment Possibilities: Hopefully, this will not be of concern
for any of your children, but banking cord blood can widen the
treatment possibilities when dealing with many diseases. To
date, cord blood is used to treat over 45 diseases and
disorders, including leukemia, sickle cell anemia, and metabolic
disorders. This is especially critical if you have any family
history of such diseases or disorder, since many of these
medical issues are genetic and can potentially be passed to the
next generation.
Compatibility: Since the banked cord blood comes directly from
the infant and is comprised of very early stem cells, the risk
of incompatibility diminishes. In many instances, cord blood
donations from family members can be denied by the body,
creating a condition known as graft vs. host disease.
Fortunately, with your own banked cord blood, this is generally
not a problem.
Cons:
Price: By far, the most constrictive aspect of banking your
child's cord blood is the price. However, many companies offer
free storage or storage at a reduced rate for cases deemed "at
need." This is usually cases regarding children that are known
to be suffering from some type of disease or disorder before
birth, or who have a significant chance of developing an issue
due to family history. Before you balk at banking your child's
cord blood, consider the insurance factor for the future. Just
like a traditional insurance plan, banking cord blood serves as
a backup in case the worst happens.
Need: Fortunately, the need for cord blood is not great and your
child--or other children--will hopefully never need a transplant
with this lifesaving blood. Generally speaking, approximately
one in 20,000 families that bank cord blood actually use the
blood at some date. However, just like any other insurance
policy, the cord blood is there if it is needed.
Size: With today's technology, the cord blood cells can only be
used for an individual under about 115 pounds. This includes
most children and some smaller adults; however, the success rate
with larger adults over this 115 pound mark is minimal. Keep in
mind, technology is still advancing, so there is a chance that
these problems will be solved in case the cord blood is needed
in the future.