Pros and Cons Of Cord Blood Banking
Due to latest research findings, medical promises and increased awareness more and more people are inclined to storing Cord Blood of their newborns. Still, consensus is equally divided amongst the anti and pro groups. But yet, there are many families for which cord blood banking makes sense. Certain issues, such as family histories of genetic diseases or belonging to certain ethnic or racial groups, factor into the decision.
According to experts, if you have a family history or are worried about a tendency to certain diseases, cord blood banking can give you peace of mind. As of today, cord blood transplants treat over 50 diseases; malignancies, such as leukemia and other cancers; metabolic disorders; blood disorders, such as sickle-cell anemia, and immuno-deficiencies. If this is your primary banking reason, then you should also consult a genetic counselor during your pregnancy for many possibilities.
There are number of factors which should be considered:
One of the most important factor is Compatibility of the Recipient, because cord blood is a more primitive source of stem cells, the recipient runs a lower risk of graft vs. host disease (GVHD), a potentially life-threatening immune response.
The second important factor could be the convenience. Not only is cord blood easy to retrieve (than to bone marrow), because it’s cryogenically stored, it is available for transplant whenever it is needed. Bone marrow, in contrast, is more difficult to get a hold of; it is harder to find a donor matching your HLA type, and the process of retrieval is comparatively more complicated.
The next great factor is about your ethnicity or belongings. Belonging to certain ethnic or racial groups may mean a longer wait to find a bone marrow donor; therefore, donating or privately banking your baby’s cord blood will make transplants readily available to these individuals.
Last but not the least is the cost involved. At present the cost is somewhat at higher side, but fortunately, some public as well as private banking companies provide their services free for ‘case of need’ families, or those families who have a relative awaiting a transplant.
So, is it really necessary? Perhaps, you are the only one to decide. Quite frankly, the decision to store cord blood is a personal one with no right or wrong answer. If you have a family history of certain diseases or disorders and have faith in this concept, it may be a good idea to store your child’s cord blood in a private bank in case you need it in the future. However, even if your family medical health history is as clean as a mirror, storing cord blood can work as insurance just in case the need ever does arise. Undoubtedly, the future seems to be quite bright as much work is yet to be performed in this field and researchers are quite optimistic about further developments.
benefits of cord blood banking: Stem cells, like those found in a newborn’s umbilical cord blood, are the source of platelets, oxygen-carrying red blood cells, and give birth to the body’s immune system. Health researchers are currently exploring new uses for umbilical cord blood stem cells in numerous medical conditions. One of the main benefits of cord blood banking is that someday, the stem cells you preserve could potentially save the life of the donor or other family members. So, overall it is considered to be a very good idea. Otherwise also, there is no harm and the process is really simple and painless to the child as well as to the mother.
Cord blood banking is no a fashion statement nor a routine in hospital or home deliveries – it’s a procedure you have to choose and plan beforehand, so be sure to take your decision carefully before delivery day, because once it is lost cannot be recovered. The primary reason that parents consider banking their newborn’s cord blood is that because they have a child or close relative with or a family medical history of diseases that can be treated with bone marrow transplants. Some diseases that more commonly involve bone marrow transplants include certain tyoes of leukemia or lymphoma, aplastic anemia, severe sickle cell anemia, and severe combined immune deficiency.
How Much Does Cord Blood Banking Cost
The odds that the average baby without risk factors will ever use his or her own banked cord blood is considered low; however, no accurate estimates exist at this time. For many families, The expense of collecting and storing the cord blood can be a deciding factor . At a commercial cord-blood bank, you’ll pay approximately $1,500 to store a sample of cord blood, in addition to a $100 yearly maintenance fee (however, in some other cases it may vary in different proportions but it is the average estimated cost).
Moreover, you are likely to pay few hundred dollars for the cord-blood collection kit, courier service to the cord-blood bank, and initial processing. In most cases, stem cell transplants are performed only on children or young adults. The larger the size of the person, the more blood forming stem cells that are needed for a successful transplant. Umbilical cord blood stem cells aren’t Sufficient in quantity to complete an adult’s transplant.
In addition, there are no concrete evidences whether stem cells taken from a relative offer more success than those taken from an unrelated donor. Stem cells from cord blood from both related and unrelated donors have been successful in much transplants. this is the reason, blood-forming stem cells taken from cord blood are naive . Therefore, donor cord blood stem cells do not need to be a perfect match to create a successful bone marrow transplant.
Lastly, there has been little experience with transplanting self-donated cells. Some experts are concerned that an ill baby who receives his or her own stem cells during a transplant would be prone to a repeat of the same disease (however, not proved as of yet).Most of the bone marrow transplants that use blood-forming stem cells have been performed on relatives of the donating child, not on the donating child. But, overall it is considered to be a wise step despite of some additional efforts and few thousand dollars.