The differences in
cord blood banks.

Find a list of cord blood banks in your area.

One of the first things you will need to do if you are thinking of storing your cord blood bank is find a list of cord blood banks that operate in your local area or the area local to the birth hospital. In some areas this may be more difficult than it sounds and you may want to consider contacting local hospitals, private hospitals and university hospitals and enquire whether they require donations of cord blood. Donated cord blood can either be used for transfusions as required or for further research but either way your donation will help save lives.

Compare the cord blood banks available to you.

Not all cord blood banks are the same, though, and when it does come time to select one you should look carefully into the options that are available to you to ensure that you are getting the service you require and, if you are donating, the service you use is one that you trust and does good work. Always bear in mind that some public cord blood banks may be non-profit organizations while others may be for profit organizations. Both serve useful purposes in so far as they further the research conducted on stem cells and particularly stem cells derived from umbilical cords. The decision of which type of blood bank to use will depend on your own personal preference.

Price and financial security.

The price may seem like one of the more important factors concerning the storage of your baby's cord blood but you should always be careful that you aren't sacrificing quality for cost. The price doesn't vary that much and the difference of a hundred dollars could mean the difference between a company going bankrupt in a few years time compared to one that will still be in operation should the need arise to use the blood in ten years time. Financial security of the company is obviously a factor you should look into, because you will hopefully be storing the blood for at least 15 years. Picking a stable company means that blood will still be there in that time.

Single unit or multiple unit storage.

You should enquire as to how the blood is stored. That is, find out whether your cord blood will be stored as several units or one large unit. If it is stored as one unit then the unit will need to be unfrozen and tested before a transfusion can be carried out, and if the stored blood is not a match with the family member who needs the transfusion it is quite possible that the whole batch of cord blood is wasted. However, if the blood you store is broken down into several units, one unit can be removed and tested and the rest only removed once a match has been confirmed.

Carefully weigh up your options.

Always be careful that you are selecting a company you really want to use. By rushing into a decision you may find yourself regretting it in the future. When considering the life of your baby or a loved one it is best not to cut corners wherever possible. If you can't afford to store the blood for the use of your own family then you should consider donating it for research and use by others.

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