Donating Cord Blood

Cord blood is the blood that is found in the umbilical cord of new born child and I rich in stem cells. The stem cells found in the cord blood can be used in future to treat leukemia and other cancers. The cord blood is collected by clamping the umbilical cord and then collecting the blood for future use. The blood that is taken is then processed and stored.

The decision to donate the cod blood is solely upon the parents and they can either donate it to the private cord blood bank or public cord blood bank. The public cord blood bank uses for treating others and the private does the same to treat any family member of the donor or the baby. 

If you have decided to donate the cord blood of your child then you need to discuss about the same with your doctor. You also need to find out whether your hospital has a tie up with private or public cord blood bank. Before going for the labor you must inform the doctor that you are donating the cord blood of your child.  The rest of the procedure i.e. collecting, processing and storage of the cord blood lies with the cord blood bank.

The blood checks the cord blood for any type of infection or other medical defects. It is also checked whether it has the capacity to generate enough blood cells (cord blood that has less cells are used for the purpose of stem cell research) for transplantation.  The NMDP registry is used to note the tissue type, it is then stored in frozen liquid nitrogen.  After the storage the cord blood is ready for any type of transplantation and it can do really wonders in terms of treating dreadful diseases.