The main reason to bank cord blood is because stem cells from umbilical cord cells can be used to treat a variety of disorders. They can be used to treat leukemia, sickle cell disease, and metabolic disorders in various family members. It can cost about $1,000-$2,000 to store a sample of cord blood, with about a $100 yearly maintenance fee to the bank where the blood is stored. You may also have to pay for the cord blood collection kit, which can cost a few hundred dollars.

There are very few risks with collecting cord blood when the baby is born, but there are a few. If the umbilical cord gets clamped too early, you may be able to store more cord blood, but that might cause low blood level in the baby and anemia soon after birth.

The American Association of Pediatrics does not recommend banking babies cord blood unless the family has a history of disease. Because cord blood banking is so new and only began in the 1970s, research hasn’t yet determined whether child would ever be able to use his or her own stem cells, or whether it is safe.

Before you decide to donate your babies cord blood, ask yourself a few questions:

1. How stable is the cord blood storage facility? (Is there a chance that it will close and that you will have to worry about moving the cord blood?)

2. How many samples have been processed? The more there are, the more likely there are more safety, collection, and handling procedures in place.

3. Is there the option of switching to another facility if you choose to?

4. What happens to the sample is the facility ends up going out of business?

5. What yearly fees and costs are involved? Do the fees increase over the years, or are they fixed?

There is a lot to think about if you are looking into banking your babies cord blood. For quite a bit more info, see http://www.science.gov/topicpages/c/cord+blood+plasma.html.