Cord Blood Storage in Calgary?

[Brotato]

Hi everyone,

We have a little guy due in about 7 weeks and we are getting to the point where we have to decide on what we do (or don't do) with his cord blood.

There are a couple options (for those who care):

1. Do nothing (aka the umbilical cord goes out as medical waste)
2. Donate it to the AB Cord Blood Bank
3. Store it privately for our use

I know we want to do something with it, but we are torn between private and public.

As the doctor tells it, less than 2% of people opt to do anything with the cord blood, and most who do opt to do something send it to the Provincial bank.

The benefits of this are that it 'only' costs $200, however the down side is that birth must happen between Mon-Thurs in order for it to get to the cord blood facility for use.

From a 'use' standpoint, anyone can use any cord blood form the bank, regardless of if you donated or not. This is good or bad. You may or may not get your own child's cord blood back, should you need it. However if there is another match there, you can use it.

This seems like the default "duh" answer, but when I found out how few people actually use the public one, I get scared, as that means the whole population has access to it, yet very few donations (small supply, huge demand).

Coles notes: The above have got me seriously considering ponying up for private storage. That way, if my child or his siblings need it, the cord blood is guaranteed there and available for your use.

The downside here, of course, is cost. I understand the kit is roughly the same $200, but the storage fee is $1,000 and then $100 or so a year. Seems like a small price to pay to guarntee stems cells and such should your child need them.


Does anyone here have any experience with either public or private cord blood saving? Any comments on what we should consider for first time cord blood savers in Calgary?


Thanks CP!

[tvp2003]

Just an FYI -- according to the Alberta Cord Blood Bank website, you have to register by the 34th week. Also, by my read, there is no cost if you donate to the ACBB? http://www.acbb.ca/

[Brotato]

Originally Posted by tvp2003

Just an FYI -- according to the Alberta Cord Blood Bank website, you have to register by the 34th week. Also, by my read, there is no cost if you donate to the ACBB? http://www.acbb.ca/

Thanks - Yes we have another week to register with them (34th week), hence why I am asking - We need to decide soon.

There is no cost to donate to the AB bank, except for the collection kit, which is the $200 I spoke of.

Any first hand experience out there? Anyone else researched the issue and have any comments?

[MrMastodonFarm]

Reason #146

[Brotato]

Originally Posted by MrMastodonFarm

Reason #146

[JiriHrdina]

Guys obviously this is important to this poster. If you have some information for him please post it, otherwise please simply don't take part in the thread.

[Grimbl420]

My wife has done a bunch of research on this when we had our last child and as a Doula who is trying to become a Midwife. From what she has told me cord blood storage is mostly a scam, and your better off donating it.

[Madman]

Originally Posted by Brotato

Thanks - Yes we have another week to register with them (34th week), hence why I am asking - We need to decide soon.

There is no cost to donate to the AB bank, except for the collection kit, which is the $200 I spoke of.

Any first hand experience out there? Anyone else researched the issue and have any comments?

We successfully donated to the Alberta Bank with our first child, (7 years ago), and were unable to with our second due to the day of the week.

Neither kit cost us anything and the cord blood that was actually donated didn't cost us anything either.

[tete]

Another option if you decide not to bank the cord blood is to delay cord clamping for at least two minutes after delivery - there have been recent studies that show that delaying cord clamping can be beneficial for babies to have that extra iron content. Despite earlier claims that it can cause jaundice, the incidents of jaundice are not statistically significant. Most cord blood banks do not allow both delayed clamping and blood collection to occur so it usually is one or the other. I had hoped to delay cord clamping with my daughter, but the doctor clamped before I had a chance to remind her of my wishes. I never entertained the idea of cord blood banking, I had not seen much evidence that it was worth the cost.

[corporatejay]

Originally Posted by Grimbl420

My wife has done a bunch of research on this when we had our last child and as a Doula who is trying to become a Midwife. From what she has told me cord blood storage is mostly a scam, and your better off donating it.

This is nonsense. I sent you a PM

[Ace]

SEE POST ABOVE...I did a ton of research into this and was convinced that it's a small price to pay to keep the cord blood, then I found out that you cannot do both delayed cord clamping and storing, you can do either or. Then with the benefits of the baby getting their own cord blood this is a no brainer,let the baby use thier own cells.

When we asked the OB she immidiatly confirmed that they are really just now realizing the benefits of this (even though they still don't do it unless you request it)

[Canada 02]

Cord blood is layman terms for hematopoetic stem cells. HSC give rise to red blood cells, white blood cells and platlets. This is not the same as embryonic stem cells. Currently, the best transplant source for HSC is a bone marrow transplant.

some important factors to consider.

1. the amount of cord blood obtained is about 50-75 mL. A very small amount. For comparison, a bone marrow transplant is about 1L in volume. Therefore, cord blood transfusion would only be used on a baby or young person. If you were banking the blood with the hope that 40+ years down the road, the cord blood could be used in place of a bone marrow transplant, it would not suffice.

2. Do you have a family history of leukemia or congenital blood disorders? If there isn't a genetic risk, then it is highly improbable that your baby or young child will become ill, then the cord blood is unlikely to be useful for you. On the flip side, if a child gets leukemia, then it is most likely inherited. That would mean the cord blood cells also have the genetic defect. The cord blood would be pretty much useless if there is a genetic defect.

3. Even if there is a possibility of a non-genetic childhood disease, a bone marrow transplant may still offer more positives than a cord blood transplant. First, a bone marrow transplant engrafts more readily than cord blood. The extra time it takes for cord blood to engraft, the patient is susceptible to infection and bleeding.

4. If the cord blood transplant is beneficial, but the patients blood counts are low, there isn't a second dose to be had (only the original 50-75 mL). This could be a big risk

The benefit of course, is you have a perfect match. There is no need to find a donor

[freedogger]

We have space in our freezer.

[flylock shox]

Man, Jiri's post totally kiboshed my intended Japanese-horror-movie-title joke.

So with that, I now have a question. Are stem cells currently useful for very much (without massive expense) or would this type of thing only be an investment for the distant sci-fi future? I had no idea this kind of thing even existed.

[Robotic]

Originally Posted by tete

Another option if you decide not to bank the cord blood is to delay cord clamping for at least two minutes after delivery - there have been recent studies that show that delaying cord clamping can be beneficial for babies to have that extra iron content. Despite earlier claims that it can cause jaundice, the incidents of jaundice are not statistically significant. Most cord blood banks do not allow both delayed clamping and blood collection to occur so it usually is one or the other. I had hoped to delay cord clamping with my daughter, but the doctor clamped before I had a chance to remind her of my wishes. I never entertained the idea of cord blood banking, I had not seen much evidence that it was worth the cost.

My girlfriend is studying to become a Naturopath, and she read that its best if the umbilical cord is left attached for up to 30 minutes. This would never happen in the hospital because Doctors want to finish up as quickly as possible. This would only happen with a Midwife.

Also my brother’s wife is a nurse in the maternity ward, and she says that particular doctors will only do C-section deliveries because they don’t have the time for a regular birth. There are a ton of benefits for a birthing centre or having a midwife at home if you’re into that kind of thing.

[corporatejay]

Originally Posted by Robotic

My girlfriend is studying to become a Naturopath, and she read that its best if the umbilical cord is left attached for up to 30 minutes. This would never happen in the hospital because Doctors want to finish up as quickly as possible. This would only happen with a Midwife.

Also my brother’s wife is a nurse in the maternity ward, and she says that particular doctors will only do C-section deliveries because they don’t have the time for a regular birth. There are a ton of benefits for a birthing centre or having a midwife at home if you’re into that kind of thing.

This is also b.s. because the doctor performing a C-section is not the same doctor who performs vaginal births, at least not at the Foothills. One is an O.B. the other is a family doctor.

[MacDaddy77]

We were never even told donating was an option. We would have donated the Cord blood for sure if we had known. it just gets thrown out anyway

[Brotato]

Originally Posted by Robotic

My girlfriend is studying to become a Naturopath, and she read that its best if the umbilical cord is left attached for up to 30 minutes. This would never happen in the hospital because Doctors want to finish up as quickly as possible. This would only happen with a Midwife.

Also my brother’s wife is a nurse in the maternity ward, and she says that particular doctors will only do C-section deliveries because they don’t have the time for a regular birth. There are a ton of benefits for a birthing centre or having a midwife at home if you’re into that kind of thing.

I appreciate the advise, thanks. I personally don't believe in naturopaths, but it's nice to hear different view points!

[Brotato]

Thanks to CorporateJay for the message with his findings! Thanks to everyone in here for the comments as well, much appreciated.

My own research has found that the cord blood banks oversell the benefits of the cord blood, much like Canada 02 posted. The most common disease that cord blood is used for is childhood leukaemia, however you cannot use your own cord blood for this, as the defect is present in the cord blood as well.

[Lt.Spears]

I would agree with the Donate mentality.