Public cord blood banks.

Why aren't more parents willing to donate?

Storing cord blood is considered too much of an expense by many families, because the total cost can rack up to as much as $3000 and quite simply, not all parents can afford this amount of money however public cord banks allow these parents to donate the cord blood of their children. If more parents donated cord blood then there would b a greater chance that anyone who needed a transfusion would be able to have one. At present, bone marrow transplants are virtually the only alternative there is to give patients the stem cells required and there are a much greater number of patients than there are donors. Umbilical cord research is ongoing, however, and researchers hope to find many more answers to the questions they have.

It is unlikely that it is an unwillingness to donate cord blood. It is more likely that parents do not have a good enough level of understanding. Whether parents believe that the process of extracting the cord blood will have a diverse affect on the birth or whether they simply aren't aware of the benefits of donating, the fact is that a greater education is needed to teach everyone of these benefits. Cord blood is taken only once the birth is complete and the cord has been clamped and cut as it normally would, therefore it has absolutely no effect on the birthing procedure whatsoever.

It costs approximately $1000 for a public bank to arrange for the extraction of the cord blood and to transport the blood to a storage facility. Each donation needs to be rigorously tested for potency and to check the type of the blood. All of this adds up and at present public cord blood banks work on a very tight budget that means they are unable to advertise. This lack of advertisement means that the number of parents donating cord blood will only increase slowly over time.

Am I able to change my mind once the cord blood has been donated?

If your child or a family member becomes sick with one of the diseases that cord blood can help cure then the public bank will usually try and locate your blood. If it can be found and it turns out to be a match for the patient then usually the bank will release the blood to you and the charge will be passed on to the patient's health insurer. It is also true of many public blood cord blood banks that they will release the blood or dispose of it upon a parent's request regardless of the reason. If you are thinking of donating cord blood then you may want to consult the blood bank you are looking to donate to in order to find out their policies on this matter.

What happens to my baby's cord blood once donated?

At present only about 5% of donated blood units get used in transplants. Depending on the blood cord bank you use the blood may be sold for research purposes. Non-profit banks will sell your blood for research but will not make a profit from the sale whereas for profit organizations will make a profit from the sale. This is not an illegal activity in the USA as long as the company in question is registered appropriately. That is, a non-profit organization cannot make a profit from the sale of your baby's cord blood.

Finding out whether a blood bank you are looking to use is for profit or non-profit can be difficult, although in most cases a telephone call and a question is all it should take. Of course, just because an organization make a profit from the sale of the cord blood doesn't mean they don't do invaluable work, but the type of organization will depend on your own opinions of this activity.

More