What is Cord Blood Banking?
Cord blood banking is the safe and painless collection, processing, and storage of your newborn’s umbilical cord stem cells. When your baby is born, whether you choose to delay cord clamping or not, there is leftover blood found in their umbilical cord. This blood is known as cord blood. Cord blood is rich in stem cells, and these cells have the remarkable capacity to transform into various types of cells and tissues - meaning they have immense healing potential.
How is Cord Blood Stored?
Our proprietary 5-compartment storage bag was designed to allow cord blood stem cells to be evenly distributed between 5 separate compartments. This storage method provides greater flexibility to use the precise number of stem cells for a specific treatment, giving families more options for multiple treatments.
What are Cord Blood Stem Cells?
How is Cord Blood Processed and Stored?
Americord’s CryoMaxx™ Cord Blood Processing unlocks the full potential of your baby’s cord blood. The process is based on the Rubenstein method to manually isolate a higher yield of cord blood hematopoietic stem cells (compared to automated processing) for your family. These HSCs are combined with a cryoprotectant to protect the cells during the controlled-rate freezing process to ensure their viability. The cord blood stem cells are stored in 5-compartment bags to ensure maximum flexibility to use the precise number of stem cells, while also having more options for multiple treatments.
How Does Cord Blood Banking Work?
Hello, Baby!
Collection
Transportation
Lab Processing
Storage
Preserving
Who Should Bank Umbilical Cord Blood?
Cord blood banking offers a unique opportunity for all families to secure a valuable resource for potential future medical treatments. Families with a medical history of genetic disorders or hereditary diseases should especially consider cord blood banking, as it provides a personalized and readily accessible source of stem cells that may be crucial in addressing specific health challenges unique to their lineage. However, the nature of illness is that sometimes we never know what may happen in the future. Preparing for your family’s future health is invaluable, just like the regenerative properties of cord blood stem cells.
What is Cord Blood Used For?
Cord blood is a valuable resource with diverse applications in medical treatments. FDA-approved treatments utilizing cord blood stem cells have demonstrated success in conditions such as leukemia, lymphoma, and certain genetic disorders. Today, there are over 80 conditions that can be treated with stem cells from the umbilical cord. In addition to this, there are 100s of clinical trials studying biotherapies using cord blood stem cells to treat neurologic, autoimmune, cardiovascular, genetic, metabolic, and orthopedic conditions.
FDA-Approved Treatments
Malignant Diseases
Leukemias
Lymphomas
Neuroblastoma
Myelodysplastic Syndrome
Myelofibrosis
Multiple Myeloma
Solid Tumors
Non-Malignant Diseases & Congenital Conditions
Anemias
Sickle Cell Disease
Thalassemia
Diamond-Blackfan Anemia
Severe Combined Immunodeficiency
Pure Red Cell Aplasia
Osteoporosis
Metabolic Disorders
Gunther Disease
Hunter Syndrome (MPS-II)
Hurler Syndrome (MPS-IH)
Krabbe Disease
Neuronal Ceroid Lipofuscinosis
Niemann-Pick Disease
Tay-Sachs Disease
Clinical Trials Using Cord Blood
Non-Blood Related Diseases
Autism
Cerebral Palsy
Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome
Acquired Hearing Loss
Alzheimer’s Disease
Myelofibrosis
Autoimmune Disorders
Type 1 Diabetes
COVID-19
HIV
Psoriasis
Crohn’s Disease
Alopecia Areata
Injuries & Orthopedic Conditions
Arthritis
Damaged Cartilage in Joints
Spinal Cord Injuries
Stroke
Osteoarthritis
Osteochondral Lesion of Talus
The Difference Between Cord Blood and Cord Tissue Banking
The primary intent of cord blood banking is to isolate and cryogenically preserve hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) found in cord blood. Whereas the primary intent of cord tissue banking is to process and cryogenically preserve the cord tissue which contains mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), growth factors, and cytokines.
Cord blood HSCs are FDA-approved to treat over 80 blood-related diseases and disorders. Treatments include various types of blood cancers and disorders and metabolic and immune disorders. In addition, there are 100s of ongoing clinical trials researching treatment options using HSCs for neurological disorders, traumatic brain injuries, cardiovascular disease, and autoimmune disorders.
Cord tissue is more versatile due to it containing MSCs, growth factors, and cytokines. It has potential applications that are distinct from applications using cord blood HSCs. There are 100s of clinical trials researching treatment options for Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, and orthopedic diseases and disorders.
Together, cord blood and cord tissue could be the future of regenerative medicine. Many expectant parents choose to preserve both to provide the widest potential scope of treatment options for the future.
Be Prepared for the Unknown.
You only have one chance to preserve your baby’s life-saving stem cells, and that’s the day they are born. Secure your family’s health by enrolling in stem cell banking today.
More About Cord Blood Banking
Can Cord Blood Be Used for Siblings?
How Much Does Cord Blood Banking Cost?
Is Cord Blood Banking Worth It
Questions About Cord Blood
Cord blood banking is a decision that many expectant parents consider, and it's important to weigh the potential benefits against the associated costs and uncertainties. The worth of cord blood banking depends on various factors, including your family's medical history, your values, and your future healthcare goals.
Cord blood banking is an excellent choice for families looking to be at the cutting edge of medical progress, as it enables them to proactively store a potential treatment option.
Cord blood banking is primarily used for storing the stem cells found in a newborn's umbilical cord blood. These stem cells have unique properties that make them valuable for medical purposes. Today, the stored cord blood can be used for 80 FDA-Approved treatments for illnesses and diseases ranging from Sickle Cell Disease to Leukemias. There are also hundreds of clinical trials ongoing each year.
Cord blood stem cells are currently FDA-approved to treat over 80 conditions and diseases. This includes cancers, blood disorders, immune disorders, and metabolic disorders. View the full list here.
At Americord, we understand that cost is an important consideration when making decisions about cord blood banking. Our pricing structure is designed to provide flexibility and affordability to our clients while ensuring the highest standards of service and quality. The cost of cord blood banking at Americord includes collection, processing, and storage. The total price starts at $3,799 and payment plans start as low as $131/mo.
Learn more about the cost of cord blood banking in this article: How Much Does Cord Blood Banking Cost?
Your baby's cord blood holds the potential to benefit both immediate family members, such as parents and siblings, as well as second-degree family members, like aunts, uncles, and grandparents. This means that not only can it provide essential support to your closest loved ones, but also offer a potential valuable resource for relatives beyond your immediate family circle.
Cord blood can be stored for an extended duration, making it a valuable asset for your family's future health needs. The preservation of cord blood is typically intended for the long term, and it can be stored for decades or even longer. Americord offers cord blood storage from 20 years to lifetime (78 years). This extended storage period ensures that the stem cells remain viable and effective for potential treatments, should the need arise in the years to come.