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Women's Health

Life's Blood Cord blood banking: to save or not to save? By Dr. Lisa KaramardianPublished: December, 2003

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There are so many choices that need to be made when you are having a new baby. Should you sign up for a child-birth class, discuss styles of delivery, pain medication, circumcision, breast or bottle feeding? There's also one more decision to make. Should you bank your baby's genetically unique cord blood stem cells? We've discussed this subject before, and you may think that you know enough about it, but there is new information and uses for stem cells that make this an area that is constantly changing. Emerging treatments using stem cell transplants for auto-immune diseases such as lupus and arthritis make this an investment whose value is continuing to grow, especially as new research continues. Cord blood banking is a birthing option that enables parents to have their newborn's umbilical cord blood collected at the time of delivery and frozen for potential future use for that baby, siblings, parents or any relative with an adequate HLA match. Cord blood is readily available and accessible, and it has been shown to be a rich source of stem cells. Tragically, cord blood is routinely discarded as medical waste. Stem cells are the master cells of the body, giving rise to the cells and tissues of each particular organ. These stem cells are being used now to treat a whole host of diseases. This biological investment may have current and potential future uses in medical treatments. Why save cord blood? The current statistic is that stem cell research has the potential to help up to half of all Americans suffering from some form of presently incurable disease, injury or birth defect. This includes juvenile diabetes, cancer (such as leukemia, myeloma and lymphoma), heart disease, Alzheimer's disease, osteoporosis, arthritis, spinal cord injuries and Lou Gehrig's disease, just to name a few. Lack of awareness is the biggest reason for not saving stem cells. Currently, stem cell transplants are used to treat more than 70 malignancies and genetic diseases. In 1988, the first successful sibling cord blood transplant was performed on a child with congenital aplastic anemia. Since then, more than 4,000 cord blood stem cell transplants now have been reported worldwide. Cord blood stem cells have several advantages over adult stem cells. These include ease of procurement, less of a requirement for tissue matching, and higher survival rates for some diseases. In fact medical studies have shown that treatments using stem cells from the patient's own family can result in survival rates that are twice as high as treatments using a stranger's stem cells. There is also a decreased chance of developing a fatal transplant rejection - a major obstacle after transplant. There is theoretically no expiration date on samples. Where should you decide to store your precious cargo? When choosing a bank to store your cord blood, you must be careful in making your decision. Twenty-eight companies have started to store cord blood; only 14 of them have survived economically so far. Make sure the bank is FDA approved for good tissue practices. You must look to see that they are financially sound, if they have processing experience, process accreditation, and also look at the total units stored, and transplant validation. Usual costs for cord blood banking are between $1,000-$1,500 for the first year and about $100 annually for storage. If a family member could benefit from stem cells, some banks, such as Cord Blood Registry, allow the family to bank for free. Only you can decide what is right for your family. Do you want to invest in this type of biological insurance? It's impossible to estimate the chance that your family might need to use a cord blood treatment. Discuss these facts with your obstetrician in order to make an informed decision. Only then will you know that you won't regret your choice. Dr. Lisa M. Karamardian is a board-certified OB/GYN and Fellow of the American College of Obstetrician's and Gynecologist's. She can be reached at 949.644.2722. Editor's Note: Private banks include California Cryobank Stem Cell Services Inc. (800.400.3430); Cord Blood Registry (888.CORD.BLOOD); Viacord (866.668.4895); and Cryocell (cryocare.co.uk).

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