Why store your baby's stem cells?

There is only a small chance that your child might become sick and require stem cell therapy and in that event it is possible you will be able to get a good match from unrelated sources.

However not everyone can get a match and the advantage of storing your child's cord blood is that it is a perfectly matched source of stem cells which will be available exclusively for your own use and, most importantly, it will be available quickly.

Highly matched transplants are associated with better clinical outcomes .

According to a study in The New England Journal of Medicine, the one-year survival rate for patients treated with a sibling's cord blood stem cells is approximately 63 percent. With cord blood from an unrelated donor, the survival rate drops to 29 percent. In addition, unrelated cord blood also puts the patient at a much greater risk for developing potentially fatal Graft vs Host Disease (GVHD) (20 percent vs. 5 percent). Related cord blood also reduces the risk that the transplant sample may harbor genetic problems that could cause disease in the recipient because the family will know the genetic history. More importantly, because cord blood cells are less mature than adult stem cells, they have a 50 percent likelihood of being a suitable HLA match between siblings, compared to only 25 percent for bone marrow. 

 This service is not just for the benefit of the individual – it can benefit the whole family.

Considering that the cause of most cancers is unknown and that the science of stem cell therapy is expanding rapidly, it is difficult to accurately calculate the odds that a family will use the cord blood or benefit from new treatments. However, according to medical research, the odds that a child will someday need to use his or her own newborn stem cells for current treatments are estimated at 1 in 400*. Odds that the newborn or a family member may benefit from banked cord blood are estimated at 1 in 200*. These odds do not include the emerging and potential use of newborn stem cells to treat heart disease, diabetes, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and spinal cord injury. The continued progress in medical treatments would greatly increase the likelihood of use by your baby throughout her life. Based on current data, there is no "expiration date" for newborn stem cells.
 

 *Pasquini MC, Logan BR, Verter F, et al. The Likelihood of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HCT) in the United States: Implications for Umbilical Cord Blood Storage. Blood. 2005;106(11)