cord blood banking w/ #2....

Ashleve · October 2011

What are you doing with #2-- banking it or not (if you've already banked w/ #1).

hotrocker2011 · October 2011

what is that Hmm

..I think i seen that on my check list but im lost Embarrassed

Ashleve · October 2011

www.cordblood.com

your OB should chat with you about it soon, it he/she hasn't already. -- it's saving baby's stem cells in case he/she gets a disease later (ex: cancer) in life or is born with CP, or another birth defect. they can be treated with the stem cells from the cord blood.

generally the CB from baby#1 is a match for #2, but there are a few things that baby #2 would need it's own stem cells for... (being born deaf, cp...)

nickert2000 · October 2011

See if your hospital will allow you to donate it.

Check out the American Acad of Pediatrics Statement: here

hotrocker2011 · October 2011

ohhhh ok..thanks.....That sound like something i would want to do since this is my first child....

Ashleve · October 2011

nickert2000:

See if your hospital will allow you to donate it.

Check out the American Acad of Pediatrics Statement: here

sorry- my question wasn't very clear.... i meant to ask- since there are some birth defects that baby#1's blood can't "fix" in baby #2, will you bank with baby #2 just in case he/she has one of the birth defects that the first sample cannot treat...

sherpa · October 2011

We didn't bank with #1 but are thinking of banking with #2. It's such a pain to get real cost figures though so I haven't bothered yet. I remember with #1 that I got so frustrated with all the different estimates that I gave up on the idea. So if #1 can help treat #2 then will #2 help treat #1?

Ashleve · October 2011

sherpa:
We didn't bank with #1 but are thinking of banking with #2. It's such a pain to get real cost figures though so I haven't bothered yet. I remember with #1 that I got so frustrated with all the different estimates that I gave up on the idea. So if #1 can help treat #2 then will #2 help treat #1?

absolutley - for certain diseases... Lukemia, other forms of cancers and blood disorders. it works both ways, and is also a match for mom and dad for those diseases/disorders as well.

sherpa · October 2011

Ashleve:
sherpa:
We didn't bank with #1 but are thinking of banking with #2. It's such a pain to get real cost figures though so I haven't bothered yet. I remember with #1 that I got so frustrated with all the different estimates that I gave up on the idea. So if #1 can help treat #2 then will #2 help treat #1?

absolutley - for certain diseases... Lukemia, other forms of cancers and blood disorders. it works both ways, and is also a match for mom and dad for those diseases/disorders as well.

Interesting. . . will one child's cord blood be enough for the entire family should everyone end up with something??

ETA: I ask because wouldn't it be horrible if you used the cord blood from one child for the other one and the one that actually donated the cord blood ended up with leukemia but there wasn't enough banked.

Sept1799 · October 2011

I didn't with dd but wanted to. The price is just out of reach for us. I guess we are taking our chances.

Trust me, if we had the funds that is something we would do with everyone of our children.

nickert2000 · October 2011

Really the public bank is the best route for everyone. Esp given the price these companies ask.

And do not believe everything the company tells you, remember they are a business and want to make money.

The American Academy of pediatrics says under their recommendations:

"Cord blood donation shouldbe discouraged when cord blood storedin a bank is to be directedfor later personal or family use,because most conditions thatmight be helped by cord blood stemcells already exist in theinfant?s cord blood (ie, premalignantchanges in stemcells). Physicians should be aware of the unsubstantiatedclaimsof private cord blood banks made to future parents thatpromiseto insure infants or family members against seriousillnessesin the future by use of the stem cells contained incord blood.Although not standard of care, directed cord bloodbanking shouldbe encouraged when there is knowledge of a fullsibling in thefamily with a medical condition (malignant orgenetic) thatcould potentially benefit from cord blood transplantation."

sherpa · October 2011

nickert2000:
Really the public bank is the best route for everyone. Esp given the price these companies ask.
And do not believe everything the company tells you, remember they are a business and want to make money.
The American Academy of pediatrics says under their recommendations:
"Cord blood donation shouldbe discouraged when cord blood storedin a bank is to be directedfor later personal or family use,because most conditions thatmight be helped by cord blood stemcells already exist in theinfant?s cord blood (ie, premalignantchanges in stemcells). Physicians should be aware of the unsubstantiatedclaimsof private cord blood banks made to future parents thatpromiseto insure infants or family members against seriousillnessesin the future by use of the stem cells contained incord blood.Although not standard of care, directed cord bloodbanking shouldbe encouraged when there is knowledge of a fullsibling in thefamily with a medical condition (malignant orgenetic) thatcould potentially benefit from cord blood transplantation."

Thank you, this is another reason why we decided against it. I think we'll go the donation route this time. My hospital doesn't participate but there is one within a few miles that does - hopefully a pick-up can be made.

Ashleve · October 2011

sherpa:
Ashleve:

sherpa:
We didn't bank with #1 but are thinking of banking with #2. It's such a pain to get real cost figures though so I haven't bothered yet. I remember with #1 that I got so frustrated with all the different estimates that I gave up on the idea. So if #1 can help treat #2 then will #2 help treat #1?

absolutley - for certain diseases... Lukemia, other forms of cancers and blood disorders. it works both ways, and is also a match for mom and dad for those diseases/disorders as well.

Interesting. . . will one child's cord blood be enough for the entire family should everyone end up with something??

ETA: I ask because wouldn't it be horrible if you used the cord blood from one child for the other one and the one that actually donated the cord blood ended up with leukemia but there wasn't enough banked.

i guess it depends on the collection size, and the illness. i really don't know.

Ashleve · October 2011

nickert2000:

Really the public bank is the best route for everyone. Esp given the price these companies ask.

And do not believe everything the company tells you, remember they are a business and want to make money.

The American Academy of pediatrics says under their recommendations:

"Cord blood donation shouldbe discouraged when cord blood storedin a bank is to be directedfor later personal or family use,because most conditions thatmight be helped by cord blood stemcells already exist in theinfant?s cord blood (ie, premalignantchanges in stemcells). Physicians should be aware of the unsubstantiatedclaimsof private cord blood banks made to future parents thatpromiseto insure infants or family members against seriousillnessesin the future by use of the stem cells contained incord blood.Although not standard of care, directed cord bloodbanking shouldbe encouraged when there is knowledge of a fullsibling in thefamily with a medical condition (malignant orgenetic) thatcould potentially benefit from cord blood transplantation."

what about CP? you can only use your own stem cells if for some reason baby has CP.... if you donate to a public bank, can you be sure that you can get your baby's own cells back to treat her/his illness?

snoangel79 · October 2011

Hi all I posted this to my month board and thought I'd share FYI... For the poster above that asked about it helping multiple "family members" it's not used that way. If you are banking privately and the doctor thought it was the best product for your child it would "hopefully" be enough for one person. I say hopefully because there are all reasons why they wouldn't get enough including size of the baby, delivery of the placenta etc. I can answer questions if anyone has any...

This was a post I made almost two months ago. I thought to repost for the new mama's who may want information and may have questions. Hi fellow April mamas!I am finally sitting down to write out the pros/cons of private vs donate vs trash vs delayed clamping... I said I was going to do this a while ago and haven't gotten around to it because well bad m/s and just being exhausted. What makes me sort of an expert you ask <: I am a cord blood collection specialist at Brigham and Women's in Boston (a cord blood donation program with Dana Farber (top cancer hospital) and also Duke's Carolina Cord Blood Bank). Previous to this I worked for the National Marrow Donor Program at Dana Farber (marrow.org) or the adult unrelated bone marrow registry telling people they were matches for patients and getting further testing for them. Before that I was also on the other side of the coin as a cancer survivor (non-hodgkin's lymphoma, 8 years ago), which is one of the main diseases sibling, unrelated, and cord blood transplants can cure.So in my current job I actually consent the mom's that aren't privately donating and am in labor and delivery. After the mom delivers the placenta I do the collection on it and hopefully get enough to bank down for transplant for a child or adult with leukemia, lymphoma, or another blood disorder such as sickle cell anemia.Now with donation it is a free program but unfortunately not widespread because of funding issues. We don't touch your baby and your delivery experience does not change in any way. I think if you don't have it available at your hospital you can contact marrow.org and they will send you a kit and hopefully your doctor will do what they are supposed to!The chance of you using your baby's cord blood are so so small if you do private banking and what people don't understand is if a child or adult needs a transplant they will look to the sibling first for a match (25% chance), then to the unrelated adult donor database (National Marrow Donor Program, DKMS etc.), last to cord blood. A sibling can donate to another sibling (bone marrow) as young as 6 months old!! They would more likely take from that 6 month donor than the cord blood because they will get more product which in turn will be better for the patient who will hopefully engraft quicker and get out of the "danger zone" of serious infections. If you are private banking I would ask "How much did you actually bank from our cord blood unit?" We can't cryo-preserve under 1 billion cells as it wouldn't be enough to "save a life". We also don't take cords from multiples or gestation age under 35 weeks as we would not get enough but private banks do, which is very concerning to me.Also, your privately banked unit would probably not help out you, or your husband, or great granddad as it needs to be a 4 out of 6 DNA match to not be rejected by your body (half the DNA comes from mom, half from dad. The chance of you having the same DNA as your husband is extremely tiny there is more of a good chance of match if you are the same ethnic make-up). This would only help a potential sibling if they are indeed a match. It wouldn't most likely be used for the child it came from either if the child ended up with leukemia as it could be some genetic defect from the beginning. You are basically banking for "future cures" for things they haven't figured out yet to use cord blood for and you also need to think if it would even still be good?? The viability of the unit is tested but if it is frozen for 20 years who knows??What makes me sad is there are a few good stories of it working and these companies prey on parents with scare tactics. I am not saying don't do it I just want all of you to make informed decisions about it. What people don't know is also if there is a sibling with a potential issue (blood disease) if you ask you may be able to have a directed donation for that sibling. We actually collect cord blood as a directed donation for the sibling and you wouldn't have to pay that banking fee. I will also tell you that most doctors and nurses don't privately bank their baby's cords they donate so that definitely speaks for itself. Also some doctors get kick-backs for pushing private banking just an FYI.Edited to add about delayed clamping: I don't know enough about the benefits to speak a lot about this. If you choose to do this it doesn't go along well with private banking or donating. Anyways, this is basically a huge amount of info and if you read it thank you! If I missed anything or if you have any questions I'd be glad to answer them!Best,Laura

Also an FYI for the original poster speaking about possibly using it for her medical condition. The cord blood would only half match you. Unless you and your husband have the same DNA. They don't use cord blood that has less than a 4 out of 6 match. Your problems could get even worse due to graft vs host disease. Maybe some day in the future they will find a way to fix this but this is not done right now. Again I am speaking from much experience as someone who works in the industry and also someone who's been through bone marrow transplant herself and know if the cancer were to come back cord blood may be my only option.

Ashleve · October 2011

snoangel79:

Hi all I posted this to my month board and thought I'd share FYI... For the poster above that asked about it helping multiple "family members" it's not used that way. If you are banking privately and the doctor thought it was the best product for your child it would "hopefully" be enough for one person. I say hopefully because there are all reasons why they wouldn't get enough including size of the baby, delivery of the placenta etc. I can answer questions if anyone has any...
This was a post I made almost two months ago. I thought to repost for the new mama's who may want information and may have questions. Hi fellow April mamas! I am finally sitting down to write out the pros/cons of private vs donate vs trash vs delayed clamping... I said I was going to do this a while ago and haven't gotten around to it because well bad m/s and just being exhausted. What makes me sort of an expert you ask <: I am a cord blood collection specialist at Brigham and Women's in Boston (a cord blood donation program with Dana Farber (top cancer hospital) and also Duke's Carolina Cord Blood Bank). Previous to this I worked for the National Marrow Donor Program at Dana Farber (marrow.org) or the adult unrelated bone marrow registry telling people they were matches for patients and getting further testing for them. Before that I was also on the other side of the coin as a cancer survivor (non-hodgkin's lymphoma, 8 years ago), which is one of the main diseases sibling, unrelated, and cord blood transplants can cure. So in my current job I actually consent the mom's that aren't privately donating and am in labor and delivery. After the mom delivers the placenta I do the collection on it and hopefully get enough to bank down for transplant for a child or adult with leukemia, lymphoma, or another blood disorder such as sickle cell anemia. Now with donation it is a free program but unfortunately not widespread because of funding issues. We don't touch your baby and your delivery experience does not change in any way. I think if you don't have it available at your hospital you can contact marrow.org and they will send you a kit and hopefully your doctor will do what they are supposed to! The chance of you using your baby's cord blood are so so small if you do private banking and what people don't understand is if a child or adult needs a transplant they will look to the sibling first for a match (25% chance), then to the unrelated adult donor database (National Marrow Donor Program, DKMS etc.), last to cord blood. A sibling can donate to another sibling (bone marrow) as young as 6 months old!! They would more likely take from that 6 month donor than the cord blood because they will get more product which in turn will be better for the patient who will hopefully engraft quicker and get out of the "danger zone" of serious infections. If you are private banking I would ask "How much did you actually bank from our cord blood unit?" We can't cryo-preserve under 1 billion cells as it wouldn't be enough to "save a life". We also don't take cords from multiples or gestation age under 35 weeks as we would not get enough but private banks do, which is very concerning to me. Also, your privately banked unit would probably not help out you, or your husband, or great granddad as it needs to be a 4 out of 6 DNA match to not be rejected by your body (half the DNA comes from mom, half from dad. The chance of you having the same DNA as your husband is extremely tiny there is more of a good chance of match if you are the same ethnic make-up). This would only help a potential sibling if they are indeed a match. It wouldn't most likely be used for the child it came from either if the child ended up with leukemia as it could be some genetic defect from the beginning. You are basically banking for "future cures" for things they haven't figured out yet to use cord blood for and you also need to think if it would even still be good?? The viability of the unit is tested but if it is frozen for 20 years who knows?? What makes me sad is there are a few good stories of it working and these companies prey on parents with scare tactics. I am not saying don't do it I just want all of you to make informed decisions about it. What people don't know is also if there is a sibling with a potential issue (blood disease) if you ask you may be able to have a directed donation for that sibling. We actually collect cord blood as a directed donation for the sibling and you wouldn't have to pay that banking fee. I will also tell you that most doctors and nurses don't privately bank their baby's cords they donate so that definitely speaks for itself. Also some doctors get kick-backs for pushing private banking just an FYI. Edited to add about delayed clamping: I don't know enough about the benefits to speak a lot about this. If you choose to do this it doesn't go along well with private banking or donating. Anyways, this is basically a huge amount of info and if you read it thank you! If I missed anything or if you have any questions I'd be glad to answer them! Best, Laura
Also an FYI for the original poster speaking about possibly using it for her medical condition. The cord blood would only half match you. Unless you and your husband have the same DNA. They don't use cord blood that has less than a 4 out of 6 match. Your problems could get even worse due to graft vs host disease. Maybe some day in the future they will find a way to fix this but this is not done right now. Again I am speaking from much experience as someone who works in the industry and also someone who's been through bone marrow transplant herself and know if the cancer were to come back cord blood may be my only option.

Thank you- this is precisely what i was looking for when i asked the question. of course, I did online research, and called the banking companies- but like you said-- they are biased becuase they are obviously in business to make money. they actually told me that baby's cord blood could be used toward other family members-- especially parents.

adamstodrake · October 2011

We are going to donate this baby's cordblood, and I am really excited about it :0) I spoke with my doctor after Snoangel's post on the April board, and she is more than willing to do the draw on the cordblood as long as I obtain the kit. I used the marrow.org website to locate who I need to contact for a kit. Hopefully I can manage to order one next week. You just take the kit with you for delivery and your doctor performs the draw. Then it is sent in to the national bank and voila, you potentially have just saved a life :0) I would rather know that the donation has a much greater chance of being used through the national bank system than hope (with a huge investment I cannot afford) that just maybe someone in my family might benefit someday.

snoangel79 · October 2011

Asheleve,

I cannot believe they actually said it can be used for you or your husband. Unless you and your husband have an HLA antigen in common (one or more) this is so untrue!! Maybe in the future they will figure something out but for now they wouldn't use cord blood in a transplant that is less than a 4 out of 6 match. If they did you would be playing with fire. You would have horrible rejection issues that possibly include multiple organ failure. I work for Dana Farber (one of the top cancer hospitals in the nation) and they have never used less than a 4 out of 6 DNA match.

TeamCohCoh · October 2011

snoangel79:
Hi all I posted this to my month board and thought I'd share FYI... For the poster above that asked about it helping multiple "family members" it's not used that way. If you are banking privately and the doctor thought it was the best product for your child it would "hopefully" be enough for one person. I say hopefully because there are all reasons why they wouldn't get enough including size of the baby, delivery of the placenta etc. I can answer questions if anyone has any...
This was a post I made almost two months ago. I thought to repost for the new mama's who may want information and may have questions. Hi fellow April mamas!I am finally sitting down to write out the pros/cons of private vs donate vs trash vs delayed clamping... I said I was going to do this a while ago and haven't gotten around to it because well bad m/s and just being exhausted. What makes me sort of an expert you ask <: I am a cord blood collection specialist at Brigham and Women's in Boston (a cord blood donation program with Dana Farber (top cancer hospital) and also Duke's Carolina Cord Blood Bank). Previous to this I worked for the National Marrow Donor Program at Dana Farber (marrow.org) or the adult unrelated bone marrow registry telling people they were matches for patients and getting further testing for them. Before that I was also on the other side of the coin as a cancer survivor (non-hodgkin's lymphoma, 8 years ago), which is one of the main diseases sibling, unrelated, and cord blood transplants can cure.So in my current job I actually consent the mom's that aren't privately donating and am in labor and delivery. After the mom delivers the placenta I do the collection on it and hopefully get enough to bank down for transplant for a child or adult with leukemia, lymphoma, or another blood disorder such as sickle cell anemia.Now with donation it is a free program but unfortunately not widespread because of funding issues. We don't touch your baby and your delivery experience does not change in any way. I think if you don't have it available at your hospital you can contact marrow.org and they will send you a kit and hopefully your doctor will do what they are supposed to!The chance of you using your baby's cord blood are so so small if you do private banking and what people don't understand is if a child or adult needs a transplant they will look to the sibling first for a match (25% chance), then to the unrelated adult donor database (National Marrow Donor Program, DKMS etc.), last to cord blood. A sibling can donate to another sibling (bone marrow) as young as 6 months old!! They would more likely take from that 6 month donor than the cord blood because they will get more product which in turn will be better for the patient who will hopefully engraft quicker and get out of the "danger zone" of serious infections. If you are private banking I would ask "How much did you actually bank from our cord blood unit?" We can't cryo-preserve under 1 billion cells as it wouldn't be enough to "save a life". We also don't take cords from multiples or gestation age under 35 weeks as we would not get enough but private banks do, which is very concerning to me.Also, your privately banked unit would probably not help out you, or your husband, or great granddad as it needs to be a 4 out of 6 DNA match to not be rejected by your body (half the DNA comes from mom, half from dad. The chance of you having the same DNA as your husband is extremely tiny there is more of a good chance of match if you are the same ethnic make-up). This would only help a potential sibling if they are indeed a match. It wouldn't most likely be used for the child it came from either if the child ended up with leukemia as it could be some genetic defect from the beginning. You are basically banking for "future cures" for things they haven't figured out yet to use cord blood for and you also need to think if it would even still be good?? The viability of the unit is tested but if it is frozen for 20 years who knows??What makes me sad is there are a few good stories of it working and these companies prey on parents with scare tactics. I am not saying don't do it I just want all of you to make informed decisions about it. What people don't know is also if there is a sibling with a potential issue (blood disease) if you ask you may be able to have a directed donation for that sibling. We actually collect cord blood as a directed donation for the sibling and you wouldn't have to pay that banking fee. I will also tell you that most doctors and nurses don't privately bank their baby's cords they donate so that definitely speaks for itself. Also some doctors get kick-backs for pushing private banking just an FYI.Edited to add about delayed clamping: I don't know enough about the benefits to speak a lot about this. If you choose to do this it doesn't go along well with private banking or donating. Anyways, this is basically a huge amount of info and if you read it thank you! If I missed anything or if you have any questions I'd be glad to answer them!Best,Laura
Also an FYI for the original poster speaking about possibly using it for her medical condition. The cord blood would only half match you. Unless you and your husband have the same DNA. They don't use cord blood that has less than a 4 out of 6 match. Your problems could get even worse due to graft vs host disease. Maybe some day in the future they will find a way to fix this but this is not done right now. Again I am speaking from much experience as someone who works in the industry and also someone who's been through bone marrow transplant herself and know if the cancer were to come back cord blood may be my only option.

Thank you so much for posting this. I have been on the fence about private banking vs. donation, but it really doesn't seem necessary to privately bank when there's no guarantee of usability.

Ashleve · October 2011

snoangel79:

Asheleve,

I cannot believe they actually said it can be used for you or your husband. Unless you and your husband have an HLA antigen in common (one or more) this is so untrue!! Maybe in the future they will figure something out but for now they wouldn't use cord blood in a transplant that is less than a 4 out of 6 match. If they did you would be playing with fire. You would have horrible rejection issues that possibly include multiple organ failure. I work for Dana Farber (one of the top cancer hospitals in the nation) and they have never used less than a 4 out of 6 DNA match.

the "expert" actually told me that just this morning when i called with all my questions. i was actually just asking about the benfits of banking twice... i guess he was really trying to sell me. his exact words, "what if you or your husband need the blood- we'll be on the planet for 70 or 80 years so the probability is pretty good- then there wont be any left for the kids...."

treble_clef · October 2011

We are not banking it... My hospital doesn't have the donation program set up...too bad...

snoangel79 · October 2011

Ashleve:
snoangel79:

Asheleve,
I cannot believe they actually said it can be used for you or your husband. Unless you and your husband have an HLA antigen in common (one or more) this is so untrue!! Maybe in the future they will figure something out but for now they wouldn't use cord blood in a transplant that is less than a 4 out of 6 match. If they did you would be playing with fire. You would have horrible rejection issues that possibly include multiple organ failure. I work for Dana Farber (one of the top cancer hospitals in the nation) and they have never used less than a 4 out of 6 DNA match.
the "expert" actually told me that just this morning when i called with all my questions. i was actually just asking about the benfits of banking twice... i guess he was really trying to sell me. his exact words, "what if you or your husband need the blood- we'll be on the planet for 70 or 80 years so the probability is pretty good- then there wont be any left for the kids...."

Wow that makes me mad actually! Every time I go shopping at Motherhood they throw in another Viacord brochure. I would love one of these idiots to call me and try to convince me that I can bank my cord blood with twins and having a cancer history, which I'm sure they would!

snoangel79 · October 2011

treble_clef:
We are not banking it... My hospital doesn't have the donation program set up...too bad...

If you hospital doesn't have a program you can always contact Duke and they should be able to send you a kit (before 34 weeks) if you OB or midwife would be willing to collect it for you.

Here's the info:

Carolinas Cord Blood BankDuke University Medical Center
Box 3350
Durham, NC 27710

1 (919) 668-1116

Ashleve · October 2011

snoangel79:
Ashleve:
snoangel79:

Asheleve,

I cannot believe they actually said it can be used for you or your husband. Unless you and your husband have an HLA antigen in common (one or more) this is so untrue!! Maybe in the future they will figure something out but for now they wouldn't use cord blood in a transplant that is less than a 4 out of 6 match. If they did you would be playing with fire. You would have horrible rejection issues that possibly include multiple organ failure. I work for Dana Farber (one of the top cancer hospitals in the nation) and they have never used less than a 4 out of 6 DNA match.

the "expert" actually told me that just this morning when i called with all my questions. i was actually just asking about the benfits of banking twice... i guess he was really trying to sell me. his exact words, "what if you or your husband need the blood- we'll be on the planet for 70 or 80 years so the probability is pretty good- then there wont be any left for the kids...."

Wow that makes me mad actually! Every time I go shopping at Motherhood they throw in another Viacord brochure. I would love one of these idiots to call me and try to convince me that I can bank my cord blood with twins and having a cancer history, which I'm sure they would!

they'd probably tell you that it's "really the best move for your family becuase the babys cord blood can help you and your husband treat future cancers."

i's put money on it!

francescajune15 · June 2014

Currently, the amount of stem cells typically collected from cord blood is only enough to treat about a 65 pound patient. By banking your second child's cord blood, you are saving more stem cells, which could potentially be used to treat a full-grown adult. For more information about the diseases being treated by cord blood, or just the cord blood banking process in general, check out these links:

https://cordadvantage.com/cord-blood-banking/diseases-treated

https://cordadvantage.com/cord-blood-banking

Want a personalized experience?

cord blood banking w/ #2....

Re: cord blood banking w/ #2....

Choose Another Board

Search Boards