Medical Debate: Umbilical Cord Blood: Where Should It Go?

Umbilical Cord Blood: Where Should It Go?

A baby's umbilical cord isn't just extra waste anymore. Research shows cord blood could be life-saving! But many parents have questions about where to store their baby's blood.

When little Jubin was born 10 days agon first-time parents, Sonaz and Daria Hamrah, were overjoyed.

"It was, it was, it was awesome," Sonaz said.

But before his birth, Sonaz and Daria had an important decision to make - what to do with Jubin's umbilical cord blood.

"In the future, it could be lifesaving," Daria said.

Umbilical blood is extracted right after a baby is born. It contains stem cells that can be used to treat more than 75 diseases ranging from immune disorders to leukemia.

OBGYN Jason James said parents are best off storing their baby's blood in a private bank, so only they can use it if the baby ever needs a stem cell transplant.

"In that blood is genetically identical stem cells to that child," James said.

Family members can also use it for a closer match. But storing privately comes at a price. Banks charge up to $2,000 up-front and about $100 a year to keep the blood - a price James said is worth it.

"Really, the holy grail of stem cell medicine is the future. Hopefully, at some point in the future, they will be able to use their stem cells to cure diabetes, to cure heart disease," James said.

But right now, Dr. Gary Kleiner only recommends private storage if there's a family history of genetic diseases or blood disorders - like leukemia.

"If a family does not have a history of these major problems, I think chances are that you'll never need the cord blood. If a public bank is available, I always recommend patients strongly consider donating to a public bank," Kleiner said.

A public bank accepts free donations and sells the cord blood to anyone who needs it. It's not an exact match, but most of the time, it doesn't have to be. In fact, the odds that a child would need his own blood at this time are as slim as 1-in-200,000.

Even so, Sonaz and Daria chose to keep Jubin's blood in a private bank.

"Just like having car insurance. I mean, we pay, I don't know, we pay, ah, how much are we paying for car insurance?" Daria said.

"A lot," Sonaz said.

"It's definitely worth it just, just the ease of mind," Sonaz said.

There are about 25 private companies that will store a baby's cord blood for a fee. Worldwide, there have been about 6,000 cord blood transplants performed. About two-thirds of those are for leukemia patients and about one-fourth is for those with genetic diseases.