Umbilical Cord Blood Bank

I am a single mom to be, and I want to do cord blood banking. Doctors say it's a scam. Opinions??

Even if the baby (my 1st child) has a slim chance of using the stem cells, I feel it's like an insurance policy of sorts. I would pay far more financially and emotionally (and the child would pay more physically) if I didn't pay this $2K for cord blood banking and the child could have used them in the near, or distant, future. Plus, I am more excited about future breakthroughs in stem cell research as the diseases they aim to treat are more common and run in my family (e.g., diabetes, heart disease, parkinsons and alzheimers). Would anyone with real experience or a personal story that's related to this topic, or with advice, please answer? Thank you kindly...I deliver in about a month, so time is of the essence.

Public Comments

1. If your child ends up with leukaemia and u end up not going through with cord blood banking,you will so regret it.... its pretty much the only source for immature blood cells which match some patients.... ive seen it quite a bit, i say go for it, you cant lose!
2. When was the last time you heard of cord banking saving anyones life? Why wouldnt you listen to the doctors? I think they would know more than most of the idiots on Yahoo answers.
3. The recommendations that I have seen from doctors is to donate your baby's cord to a cord bank. The chances of your child needing its own chord is almost none. However there are tissue banks out there that distribute the cells to those who do need them.
4. I personally don't think the technology is here quite yet... it's more of an investment more than anything. YOu seem to know the concept... If your child gets sick when he/she is 20, 30 or 40 years old, the cord blood cells are supposedly able to turn into any organ needed for your child (you've heard of stem cells)... and the body won't reject it since it belongs to the baby's body. You are taking somewhat of a risk... if your child were sick now, the blood won't do you much good. If your child gets some sort of cancer later in life, it may just help! I've heard professionals call it an "investment." A scam? Well... people are cashing in on simply storing something that has no use for the time being. I, myself, don't consider this to be a bad thing, but I wouldn't break my bank over it. I believe that medical technology will advance itself in 20-50 years down the road... so maybe then there will be cures for the diseases we deal with today. You never know :)
5. Well, what the Cord Bank companies fail to tell you is that cord blood is like any other blood. It is only good for so long. "Whole blood is only good for 42 days. After that, it “expires” and must be destroyed as it might not be safe for patients. Platelets (a particular blood cell that is collected in concentrated doses during apheresis donations) only have a shelf life of 5 days. This is why there is a constant need for blood, blood products and donors." (*See 1st link below*) There are many debates on how long cord blood is good for. Some claim up to 10 yrs. or more. Others claim much less than that. Then there's the question of will it truly be needed. In my opinion, I would rather donate the cord blood to a PUBLIC BANK, rather than paying a COMPANY oodles of money. Then the cord blood is more likely to be used. Granted, you probably won't get your own cord blood if the need arises. It becomes annonymous. However, I'd much rather see it go to use, than be wasted, by being kept in storage for years and years because no one in my family needed it. And heaven knows who may be helped by your donation. See links below.
6. It is actually not a good idea for your child to use his own cord blood if he happens to get any of those illness in future because the chances of the illness recurring is higher if he uses his own cord blood. It would be more useful for his other siblings or relatives.
7. The technology DOES exist. Do your research. There was a news story on the radio just yesterday about the advances in stem cells from the umbilical cord helping leukemia patients. I would get another opinion. I can not believe that a doctor would tell someone that it is a scam. It certainly is not contributing to informed consent for them to not give you facts. If you do not store the cord blood yourself, some hospitals donate it to banks that do. Some hospitals "sell" it (to companies that, for instance, make perfume-I am for real). So perhaps doctors/hospitals are losing a kickback by parents becoming more aware and banking the cord blood for themselves. I just know that it HAS already been proven to help treat a variety of diseases, and I believe it will prove even more beneficial in the future.