Is this something a great majority of parents are doing? We are considering it because it sounds like a smart idea, but not sure if this is just appealing to our worry-wort side.
I don't know much about banking the cord blood, but my boss at work has leukemia and is benefiting from someone's cord blood donation. They couldn't find a bone marrow match and instead are using cord blood. I guess it is something new that they are doing now. He is doing well. I wish that I would have donated my daughter's cord blood! Good luck with your decision!
When we were pregnant with our first, we researched banking vs. donation and learned that the likelihood of using your own vs. someone benefitting from your cord blood didn't justify the cost. When I learned we were having twins, I contacted the bank that we donated our first child's cord blood to and was told that they don't take cord blood from twins because it's difficult for the hospital to appropriately collect a good sample when they're more concerned with a more complicated twin delivery and as a result they often don't even get enough. They also told me that while a private bank might tell me that they can handle it, they're probably more interested in my payment than whether we'll actually get a usuable sample to bank.
Good luck! My twins are now almost 3. It's as much more fun as it is more work. Enjoy!
L.-
I wanted to donate, mostly because I thought banking was very expensive with no guarantees that it would even be helpful should we need use it in the future. There are places locally in chicago that take care of everything for you - it just depends at which hospital you plan to deliver. The place I chose didn't pick up from my hospital so I found another place that was willing to take it. The application (even to donate) is about 15 pages long and must also be signed by your doctor in advance. You need to send in everything before 32 weeks, I believe, and then they contact you and are supposed to send you a kit in advance which you take to the hospital and includes instructions for what to do when ready for transport. I ended up with an emergency c-section so it was a big waste of time for me. I don't know about the twin thing - I'm sure you could do a little research in advance and save yourself a lot of hassle if they don't do it. Just remember that it's your own personal decision. Don't feel guilty if you decide against banking. These companies are in business because they make a profit.
We thought of doing this when our daughter was born two years ago and I did much research on it. If you can afford the initial storage fee and then the annual maintenance fees then why not but we found it to be cost prohibitive at the time. The American Acadamy of Pediatrics says:
Cord blood donation should be discouraged when cord blood stored in a bank is to be directed for later personal or family use, because most conditions that might be helped by cord blood stem cells already exist in the infant’s cord blood (ie, premalignant changes in stem cells). Physicians should be aware of the unsubstantiated claims of private cord blood banks made to future parents that promise to insure infants or family members against serious illnesses in the future by use of the stem cells contained in cord blood. Although not standard of care, directed cord blood banking should be encouraged when there is knowledge of a full sibling in the family with a medical condition (malignant or genetic) that could potentially benefit from cord blood transplantation.
I would do some research on the subject before making a decision and disucss it with your doctor/pediatrician. Good luck!
We donated our son's cord blood. The odds of us needing his cord blood were very small, and the odds of it being able to help someone else were very large so it seemed like the right thing to do. Plus, I believe it's rather expensive to bank cord blood (there's a monthly fee etc).
L.,
We looked into it too. I also read that its not really worth the money if you don't have a medical issue where you absolutely need it. Having said that, I do have 2 friends who have their cord blod banked.
We ended up donating our son's cord blood. After reading what can be done with donated cord blood to save babies and adults, it was worth it to us to donate it. We certainly feel good knowing that a simple act can save so many lives.
I wish you luck in your decision.
B.
