Umbilical cord blood banking or simply cord blood banking is a medical process that collects remaining blood from the newborn’s umbilical cord after it is cut. The collected blood will then be deposited to a cord blood bank and be preserved for future use. The remaining blood from the cord and the placenta is very rich in stem cells and hematopoietic cells. These blood products according to studies are helpful in treatment of diseases like Diabetes Mellitus type I and brain injury. Medical scientist believes that there are still a lot of diseases that could find solution from stem cells and hematopoietic cells from cord blood. Studies are actually on going for stroke, hearing loss and cardiovascular diseases.
There are actually a lot of promising breakthroughs with cord blood treatment. That is why umbilical cord blood banking is gaining popularity. Collection of cord blood is not at all painful or harmful to the baby. Once the cord is cut, a needle is inserted to the cord’s vein to collect the blood. The needle collects the remaining blood through a catheter that is attached to a blood bag. Once the process of collection is completed in the delivery room the collected blood will be sent to a cord blood bank. The blood bank will cryopreserve the cord blood and will make it available for future use.
Umbilical cord blood banking is available through public and private cord blood banks. Cord blood can be donated to a public cord blood bank which is free but the cord blood can be used by anyone who will need it. On the other hand, private cord blood banks can cryopreserve the cord blood and have it available for future use by the donor or relatives. This is for the purpose of autologous transfusion. The private cord blood banks collect a substantial fee upon receiving the blood and annual fee for cryopreservation.
Umbilical cord blood banking may soon be a medical thing of the future. There are no ethical setbacks that may hold research projects on it as compared to embryonic stem cells. Cord blood collection is not harmful to human life. Medical researchers believe that by the year 2015 there will be around 10,000 cord blood transplantations. There will be more regenerative diseases that can be corrected by cord blood. That is why the government has full support for research studies and establishment of cord blood banks.