Cord Blood Banking - Seattle,WA

I donated the cord blood to the local blood center. There was paperwork that went along with the procedure, and it was a hassle getting it at the hospital since my son was born 3 weeks premature. So I would recommend getting all your paperwork done in advance. But the retrieving of the cord blood was not a problem.

We considered doing the private banking, but decided that the private banks really play up individuals' fears in order to make a buck. This was after discussions with my OB and the childbirth class educator. At that time, it was really hit and miss whether the child's cord blood could be used to treat his own disease--for example, if a child has a genetic problem, his cord blood will have the same cells that led to that genetic problem, so in some cases would not be usable to treat certain diseases. The child would be better off using the cord blood of a healthy individual that had been donated. I think if you or your husband have a family history of genetic diseases that can be treated by saving the cord blood, then by all means, do it.

It is, indeed, scary to think of all the diseases that may occur to our children. But I don't appreciate private corporations taking one's money by playing up on our fears. If everyone donated cord blood to the public blood banks, wouldn't we all have a healthier system? Anyways, just my two cents...

Good luck on the birth of your child!

I'd be more inclined to donate it - rather than store - mainly for the cost - but more so that someone else who needs it today can use it. Also don't count on it - there is a cut off if your baby is born early. And things might not go as planned.

We considered banking our baby's cord blood, but ultimately decided to donate it so another baby could benefit from it NOW. Chances are extremely high that my baby would never need it, and I felt the desire to help another mommy with a sick child. I can't even imagine what it's like to be in that situation so I'm glad we could help.

First of all, I would check with the hospital and my ob-gyn to see if they can accommodate my desire to bank cord blood. Then weigh the cost of long-term storage of this blood product. Do you or your husband have a family history of cancers or other genetic disorders that these cells could possibly be used for? Have you had genetic testing done on your baby, and is that driving this need? This is not an inexpensive procedure or storage prospect, so think carefully when you're committing your future finances. Storage fees could equal a year at an ivy league college by the time your child turns 18. And at what point do you disgard the blood? Parenthood is frightening, but there is more pleasure and pure joy than fear and tragedy. the vast majority of babies make it to adulthood and retirement centers than not.

I disagree with the negative vibe of these comments toward cord blood banking.

First of all, it's not cheap, but it's not college either. Storage is only $100/year. Even with the initial fee of a few thousand dollars for collection, it doesn't touch the cost of a year at an ivy league school -- or any other college.

I missed the chance to store my first child's cord blood and regret it. I saved and stored for my other two. It's easy and most OBs are very familiar with it.

Basically, you are buying insurance. Like all insurance, you hope and pray you will never need it, but it's nice to know it's there.

We used Viacord and haven't had any problems. But the most important thing is to use a company that is financially stable with a long history. You want them to be around if you do ever need that cord blood.

Having said all that, if you are not going to store your baby's cord blood, then by all means donate it.

Good luck with the new baby!

C. S
Chief Mama at Baby Chaleco
www.babychaleco.com

I just want to say that the cost is no where near what it is going to cost you to pay for a year of school. Also, yes, you need to clear it with your doc but as far as I know pretty much everyone is willing to collect it for you. It took my midwife about five minutes total (sorry I forgot the name of our company, but they are the ones with the purple background on their ads and the baby looking down at their bellybutton-I think it's cord blood registry)

We went around and around about it and ended up doing it. We made our decision after consulting my husband's uncle who is no doctor, but is very rational about these sort of things.

His answer: why not, you'll probably help buy her a computer someday (and that's when we realized the overall cost was comparable to a lot of things we will probably help her buy)

With that said, I think donating it is a great idea too!

good luck!

We looked into it as well, but decided not to do it after talking with my obgyn and our pediatrician. They both advised us against it because of the feasability of being able to use it. They both pointed out that if we needed it, there was a good chance that the cord blood would have the same issue. We instead donated the cord blood where it is virtually guaranteed to be used. If you want to donate it, you'll need to tell your obgyn and the hospital when you check in.

Hi ! I work for a cord blood bank and can give you the facts behind the over-promotion. See http://cordadvantage.com/cord-blood-blog/2011/5-straight-... to find 5 Straight Facts About Cord Blood ViaCord / ViaCell and Cord Blood Registry Won’t Tell You.

We also donated our cord blood, and plan to do so again with baby #2 in May. Lara hit all the reasons we considered and reconsidered below.

The private banks/registries are counting on your fear as a new parent to drive their business. My husband and I both have healthy backgrounds for the most part (minus the smoking related cancer on my dad's side), and we thought if another family could benefit from research done through our child's cord blood, or from the blood itself,--why not?

I think what really "finalized" our decision was trying to research "cord blood" success stories and seeing the same ones over and over again!

Good Luck!