I just read this great article about cord blood and it’s benefits of not only saving a child’s life but how it can also be used to save the life of parents, siblings or even another family member.  10 years ago I gave birth to my daughter and it’s just amazing how 10 years later the discoveries of cord blood are just increasing and proving the benefits of banking your baby’s cord blood. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did…

Cord blood banking isn’t just an investment in your child’s future; it’s an investment in your future as well

While the odds of your child ever needing to use his/her cord blood may be slim, what about you? Or your parents? Or one of your other blood relatives? Even if cancer doesn’t run in your family, some of cord blood’s future potential applications involve treatment of Alzheimer’s disease, muscular dystrophy, diabetes, arthritis, osteoporoses and even stroke. According the CDC, one in four people develop hip arthritis at some point in their lives, and one in two develop osteoarthritis in their knees before the age of 85. Thus, even if your child’s stem cells are never used in a life and death situation, they could one day be used to alleviate your (or an elderly relative’s) joint or muscle pain.

However, the family member must be a suitable match to use your baby’s cord blood stem cells. Siblings have the greatest chance of being a match with 25% of cases resulting in a perfect match. Other family members do have a lower chance of being a match, however, but that that chance is always there.

The Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCS) found in cord tissue, however, have a characteristic referred to as “immune privileged status.”  This means that these cells are ignored by the host’s immune system and do not cause an immune response.  This means that they theoretically can be used for ANY family member and potentially non-related individuals.  These cells can also be grown and refrozen, giving your family a potentially limitless supply of stem cells.

Your baby’s cord stem cells have a higher chance of being a match for you than a donor’s stem cells

While a newborn’s umbilical cord tissue and/or cord blood will always be an exact match for him/her, there’s also a high chance that the stem cells will be a match for another family member. While the cord blood won’t be a perfect match like it is for the child, banked stem cells could be used to treat parents, siblings, or other blood-related relatives if they’re a close match. If they are a close match, the transplant surgery will have a much greater chance of success compared to a donor’s stem cells.

Your baby’s cord blood is available for immediate use whenever – and wherever – you need it. No waiting around for a donor!

In transplant situations, waiting time typically makes a big difference in the effectiveness of illness treatment. The delays that occur in searching for a donor who is a close match often reduces the successful outcome of stem cell transplant treatment. Furthermore, donor matches are not a guarantee that the transplant surgery will be successful. When you keep your baby’s cord blood in private storage, however, the wait time is eliminated. The baby’s cord blood is available for immediate use whenever – and wherever – you need it.

Storing your baby’s cord blood with CorCell is the smart choice, both for thehealth of your baby and that of your family members.

(CorCell Companies, Inc., a Cord Blood America® company, is one of the first private cord blood bank in the United States. Call us today within the U.S. at 1-888-882-CORD(2673) or internationally at 702-914-7250 to discuss your cord banking options.)

Article Taken from http://www.corcell.com/blog/cord-blood-benefits-family/#.UdRHkcovyl7

In Canada “CReATe Cord Blood Bank” is one company BabyView uses to promote banking cord blood.