Cord Blood Stem Cells Information

someone suggested tht i should plan for umblical cord blood stem cell banking...what r its benefits..?

and how does this umblical cord cell banking helps??

Public Comments

1. The stem cells in umbilical cord blood can cure alot of deadly diseases. For example if your child got cancer, they could use the stem cells to fight the cancer. They could also use it on other family members just in case one of you got a bad illness. The list of things it could cure are endless. I think it's a great idea and a very responsible thing to do. Better to be safe than sorry, I guess.
2. I looked into this also but then decided not to do it. The benefits are that your baby's cord blood can be used to treat certain diseases if he is prone to them later on in life, such as diabetes and cancers.. possibly even cure them. Basically, it's like an insurance. Your baby's cord blood can only be saved at birth so you can't decided later on that you want to do it.. it's a now or never thing. The cost is about $1,500 - $2,000 initially, and then about $100 a year after that for every year you store it. There are other pricing plans and companies vary. It is a good plan for someone with a family history of diseases, cancers and diabetes.. also a good thing just to have if you want it. We decided not to do it after doing extensive research on it. It doesn't guarantee curing diseases and doesn't really guarantee anything. It's basically just a research that is still in process. I also feel like in 20 years from now, we are going to see so many breakthroughs with medical research that we are no longer going to need stem cells and cord blood.. so by then it may or may not have been a waste of money. That is my theory on it. But I say do research on it and decide if it's good for your baby.. also speak to your doctor about it. It obviously won't hurt to go forward with it. When I researched.. I thought neo cells was the best company: http://www.neocells.com They will send you an information booklet if you request it. Best Wishes. ;-)
3. The umbilical cord is flash frozen so that if EVER the child needs stem cells to help cure a disease his/her own cells are available to be used. It is fairly expensive and the hospital where you deliver has to be qualified to do this. The long term need will never be known until the need arises. I wanted to do it for my granddaughter and the parents rejected the offer...
4. Stem cells collected from the cord blood can assist in treating some diseases, but there's lots of debate over which diseases and how effective this form of treatment can be. For example, if the individual from whom the cord blood is collected is suffering a genetic disease, the cord blood isn't going to be much help (same genes). There's also a chance the cord blood will never help simply because it will never be needed. It's likely that you will pay to collect and store the blood, but your baby (or family members) won't have a requirement for it. Some view this as a type of insurance policy, and it gives them peace of mind to think that they've got all their bases covered in the rare event that one day an illness occurs which can indeed be effectively treated by the stem cells.