My wife and I are parents-to-be. Upon learning that my wife was pregnant, her obstetrician handed us a brochure advertising the services of a private cord blood bank and encouraged us to consider this opportunity. From the Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy:
Cord blood banking is a procedure in which cord blood is taken from a baby’s umbilical cord shortly after delivery and preserved for possible future use in stem cell transplant.
Subsequently, when attending a $125 per couple pregnancy class at this doctor’s office, a woman from the blood cord bank, advertised in the aforementioned brochure, was allowed to conduct a 45 minute sales presentation (personally, I don’t like finding out that I paid, in part, for a sales presentation). Finally, the obstetrician later followed up during a prenatal visit to ask if we made a decision about using the services offered by this private company.
Here’s what the Mayo Clinic Guide, previously mentioned, has to say about private cord blood banking:
Donating cord blood to a private facility for possible personal use is controversial. The cost is often considerable, and the chance that your child will use his or her own banked cord blood in the future is remote. Also, should your child need a stem cell transplant, there’s no guarantee that his or her banked cord blood will remain viable or suitable for a transplant.
This Guide also points out that the American Academy of Pediatrics discourages private cord blood banking. The exception to this advice, however, is when parents already have a child with a condition that might benefit from transplantation.
I’ve heard it said that the greatest act of generosity is helping somebody whom you’ve never met and are never going to meet. I believe that. So, my wife and I decided to donate our baby’s cord blood to a public cord blood bank, specifically the Carolinas Cord Blood Bank. Public banks store cord blood for use by anybody who might benefit, and donating to one is a great opportunity to help others. If you’re pregnant or planning to have a child, I strongly encourage you to explore making a cord blood donation to a public bank.
Thanks for listening!