A cord blood bank is a facility which stores umbilical cord blood for future use. Both private and public cord blood banks have developed in response to the potential for cord blood in treating diseases of the blood and immune systems. Public cord blood banks accept donations to be used for anyone in need, and as such function like public blood banks. Traditionally, public cord blood banking has been more widely accepted by the medical community.[1] Private cord blood banks store cord blood solely for potential use by the donor or donor's family. Private banks typically charge around $2,000 for the collection and around $200 a year for storage.[2]
The policy of the American Academy of Pediatrics states that "private storage of cord blood as 'biological insurance' is unwise" unless there is a family member with a current or potential need to undergo a stem cell transplantation.[3][4][5] The American Academy of Pediatrics also notes that the odds of using one's own cord blood is 1 in 200,000[6] while the National Academy of Medicine says that only 14 such procedures have ever been performed.[6] Private storage of one's own cord blood is unlawful in Italy and France, and it is also discouraged in some other European countries. The American Medical Association states "Private banking should be considered in the unusual circumstance when there exists a family predisposition to a condition in which umbilical cord stem cells are therapeutically indicated. However, because of its cost, limited likelihood of use, and inaccessibility to others, private banking should not be recommended to low-risk families."[1] The American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation and the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists also encourage public cord banking and discourage private cord blood banking. Nearly all cord blood transfusions come from public banks, rather than private banks,[2][5] partly because most treatable conditions can't use one's own cord blood.[3][7]
Cord blood contains hematopoietic stem cells (which can differentiate only into blood cells), and should not be confused with embryonic stem cells or pluripotent stem cells, which can differentiate into any cell in the body.[2][3] Cord blood stem cells are blood cell progenitors which can form red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. This is why cord blood cells are currently used to treat blood and immune system related genetic diseases, cancers, and blood disorders. Cord blood is also a source of mesenchymal stem cells, which can further be differentiated to form connective tissues, bones and cartilage.[8] On the possibility that cord blood stem cells could be used for other purposes, the World Marrow Donor Association and European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies states "The possibility of using one’s own cord blood stem cells for regenerative medicine is currently purely hypothetical....It is therefore highly hypothetical that cord blood cells kept for autologous use will be of any value in the future” and “the legitimacy of commercial cord blood banks for autologous use should be questioned as they sell a service which has presently no real use regarding therapeutic options.”[9][10]
^ abcAmerican Academy of Pediatrics Section on Hematology/Oncology; American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Allergy/Immunology; Lubin, B. H.; Shearer, W. T. (2007). "Cord Blood Banking for Potential Future Transplantation". Pediatrics. 119 (1). Pediatrics.aappublications.org: 165–170. doi:10.1542/peds.2006-2901. PMC 6091883. PMID 17200285. S2CID 73370999. Retrieved 2015-03-09.
^"Aap News Release - Aap: Cord Blood Banking For Future Transplantation Not Recommended". Nationalcordbloodprogram.org. 1999-07-06. Archived from the original on 2006-01-05. Retrieved 2015-03-09.
^ abThornley, I.; Eapen, M.; Sung, L.; Lee, S. J.; Davies, S. M.; Joffe, S. (2009). "Private Cord Blood Banking: Experiences and Views of Pediatric Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation Physicians". Pediatrics. 123 (3). Pediatrics.aappublications.org: 1011–1017. doi:10.1542/peds.2008-0436. PMC 3120215. PMID 19255033. Retrieved 2015-03-09.
^zainab, khursheed. "What are umbilical cord stem cells? - Stem Cells Australia". www.stemcellsaustralia.edu.au. Archived from the original on 2019-10-21. Retrieved 2019-11-10.
^"WMDA Policy Statement on the Utility of Autologous or Family Cord Blood Unit Storage" (PDF). Bloodcell.transplant.hrsa.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-10-10. Retrieved 2015-03-09.
^"Public Cord Blood Donation". National Cord Blood Program. Retrieved 2015-03-09.
Cordblood (umbilical cordblood) is blood that remains in the placenta and in the attached umbilical cord after childbirth. Cordblood is collected because...
largest private cordbloodbank, Thai Stemlife. Cordlife is also the first Singapore private cordbloodbank to provide cordblood and cord lining banking...
all bloodbanks in the United States are accredited by AABB. In addition, AABB accredits hospital transfusion services, biotherapies facilities, cord blood...
through early cord clamping and cutting, to freeze for long-term storage at a cordbloodbank should the child ever require the cordblood stem cells (for...
Singapore CordBloodBank (Abbreviation: SCBB) is Singapore's only public cordbloodbank that collects, processes and stores donated umbilical cordblood for...
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donation of blood, apheresis, marrow, cordblood, organ and tissue. The Foundation works to educate citizens about donation. LifeSouth CordBloodBank is a community-based...
bone marrow, peripheral blood, or umbilical cordblood, in order to replicate inside a patient and produce additional normal blood cells. HSCT may be autologous...
publicly held companies. He's most notable for having founded and managed CordBlood America, Inc. (CBAI), a company specializing in the harvesting and storage...
Tecnologia, SA, was founded in 2003, becoming the first umbilical cordbloodbank in the Iberian Peninsula. Since then, it has developed into the largest...
Camden Medical Centre National Centre for Infectious Diseases Singapore CordBloodBank Singapore Gamma Knife Centre Fullerton Health Group "Health Facilities"...
finds a match to a cordblood unit, they notify the cordbloodbank that stores that unit and arrange to send it to the patient. Cordblood units are shipped...
Milstein National CordBlood Center, a public cordbloodbank named after board member Howard Milstein. The National CordBlood Program (NCBP), directed...
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research and use. GenCure operates the Texas CordBloodBank, which collects and processes umbilical cord for banking, stem cell therapy, and research...
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set up the UK's first dedicated cordbloodbank, allowing mothers to safely donate the blood from their umbilical cord and placenta after they give birth...
repairing heart tissue, birth defects, and other damaged tissues. Cell bankcordbloodbank "European Biotech Company Biocell Center Opens First U.S. Facility...
haematology. In 1997, Rodwell was tasked with establishing the Queensland CordBloodBank (QCBB) at the Mater Mother's Hospital. Upon its inception, Rodwell...
implementation of the Amber Alert system" and secured state funding for a "cordbloodbank [in Syracuse] that will transform medical waste into life-saving treatments...
McDonald House Charity Australia is also the major private donor to cordbloodbanks in Australia, providing a 10-year $A1 million commitment. The first...
evidence in this regard. In 1952, the "Army BloodBank" was established by "Dr. Mohammad Ali Shams" and blood transfusion center of Red Lion and Sun Society...
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