Labor and Birth Cord Blood BankingWhat are the benefits of cord blood banking, and what exactly is cord blood banking?
During pregnancy, your child’s umbilical cord is its only way to survive. The umbilical cord contains blood that's rich in stem cells and an exact match with your newborn. If you keep your baby’s stem cells through cord blood banking, it will make sure that there's always a perfectly matched supply of stem cells in times of life threatening illness. Your baby will benefit from keeping and preserving that umbilical cord very greatly and it is a painless and very simple procedure.
What diseases can cord blood banking help with?
There are a wide range of diseases that stem cells can help heal. Many of them are
genetic disorders. These include:
• Leukemia
• Lymphoma
• Breast cancer
• Hodgkin’s disease,
• Aplastic anemia,
• Various other cancers,
• Sickle cell anemia,
• Blood diseases,
• Hereditary/genetic conditions
• Various immune system disorders.
The list keeps growing as everyday they find new ways to use stem cells to treat diseases, and cord blood banking can save many lives n the future just by using stem cell transplants.
Supposing you have a child that has not been through cord blood banking and is in need of stem cells to help combat a disease, you need to remember that they can be matched to a sibling, if the match is close, which often is the case because siblings are genetically bonded. So in most cases siblings can also benefit from their brothers/ sisters stem cells. This is also the reason why parents opt to have a new baby in order to save a siblings life by using the newborns stam cells. Technique is great isn't it!
Now the question you may be asking is “How do they do it?”
Cord blood banking happens when the baby is born and the umbilical cord is removed from the newborn. You don’t have to fear this procedure. It doesn’t hurt your baby in any way. The blood is taken from the core of the umbilical cord and is preserved in a sterile kit. This can be provided by the Cord Partners Blood Center. The collected blood is then transported to their center where they will test and extract the cord blood, the cord blood that was collected is stored at very low temperatures until the owner is in need of it.
The final concern that many mothers have regarding cord blood banking is if there is any pain involved in this procedure for both the mother or the baby. The answer to this question is no because the procedure is actually performed upon separation of the umbilical cord. It is no longer attached to anything, therefore, no pain or discomfort to anyone. Consider giving your baby a great gift for life by having his/her cord blood saved and stored for future use, he/she will be grateful for it when the need should arise.
