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Cord blood banking (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Gawain
- Start date
Baloney Sandwich
Footballguy
We looked into it and decided not to do it. I don't necessarily think it is a scam but I certainly don't feel like a bad parent for not doing so.
Godsbrother
Footballguy
We managed to raise three kids without it.
Captain Fantastic
Footballguy
It's all cost/benefit.
You can be a perfectly healthy 30 yr old who is NOT likely to die in the next 20 years. However, responsible individuals (if they have families) pay for some level of life insurance just to secure against the worst-case possibility.
Now, if you shell out $X every month for a $10mil policy and you don't die. It was foolish and you wasted that money. But if you have that policy and unfortunately DO bite the dust, then you were a genius (granted, a dead genius) and really took care of your family. Most people don't engage in that ultra-high policy scenario because the cost/benefit analysis just doesn't make sense, but you never know.
Same thing with cord blood. Odds are very high that your child will never become ill with something that would require cord blood to genetically treat the condition. Paying for cord blood cryo-storage for years on something you'll most likely never need is foolish. HOWEVER, if your child were to ever unfortunately become ill to that degree--and if the cord blood could be the difference-maker in his or her return to health--there is no cost that would be too high to have it. Alas, you can't get it retroactively. You either pay for it from the beginning or you just don't have it.
I've paid to bank cord blood on both my kids. It's expensive, but in the "what if" scenarios, it's an expense I'm willing to take. Plus, I'm betting on the future that advances in the field will be phenomenal over the next decade. I didn't just bank cord blood for childhood illnesses, I banked it so that if my son is 45 and diagnosed with cancer, there is a possibility that stem cell treatment will have advanced to the point (by then) that his cord blood could reverse the cancer and buy him another 45 years.
Is it foolish? Possibly and maybe even probably, but I'm still willing to spend the money.
Oh, and for what it's worth, if you have multiple kids (or are planning to), it might be a reasonable compromise to bank the cord blood of just one kid. Stem cells from genetic siblings are likely just as viable (even if not the perfect match of personal stem cells).
Just my own two cents. I see this as something that will be completely standard in twenty years (and the cost will have gone way down) where every child's cord blood is saved and stored.
You can be a perfectly healthy 30 yr old who is NOT likely to die in the next 20 years. However, responsible individuals (if they have families) pay for some level of life insurance just to secure against the worst-case possibility.
Now, if you shell out $X every month for a $10mil policy and you don't die. It was foolish and you wasted that money. But if you have that policy and unfortunately DO bite the dust, then you were a genius (granted, a dead genius) and really took care of your family. Most people don't engage in that ultra-high policy scenario because the cost/benefit analysis just doesn't make sense, but you never know.
Same thing with cord blood. Odds are very high that your child will never become ill with something that would require cord blood to genetically treat the condition. Paying for cord blood cryo-storage for years on something you'll most likely never need is foolish. HOWEVER, if your child were to ever unfortunately become ill to that degree--and if the cord blood could be the difference-maker in his or her return to health--there is no cost that would be too high to have it. Alas, you can't get it retroactively. You either pay for it from the beginning or you just don't have it.
I've paid to bank cord blood on both my kids. It's expensive, but in the "what if" scenarios, it's an expense I'm willing to take. Plus, I'm betting on the future that advances in the field will be phenomenal over the next decade. I didn't just bank cord blood for childhood illnesses, I banked it so that if my son is 45 and diagnosed with cancer, there is a possibility that stem cell treatment will have advanced to the point (by then) that his cord blood could reverse the cancer and buy him another 45 years.
Is it foolish? Possibly and maybe even probably, but I'm still willing to spend the money.
Oh, and for what it's worth, if you have multiple kids (or are planning to), it might be a reasonable compromise to bank the cord blood of just one kid. Stem cells from genetic siblings are likely just as viable (even if not the perfect match of personal stem cells).
Just my own two cents. I see this as something that will be completely standard in twenty years (and the cost will have gone way down) where every child's cord blood is saved and stored.
sbonomo
Footballguy
Johnny Rock
Footballguy
How many socks do you have "stored" and how many pairs do you buy per month?Brony said:
Agree with a lot of this but there are other considerations. It is a very expensive insurance policy and there are generally other methods of treatment out there.There are few conditions in which cord blood can be used, that can't also be treated by a bone marrow transplant. In addition, there are public banks which can be drawn from. If your background is generally European white, there is a very good chance of a match in the public banks. Unfortunately, donations aren't as high for minorities so I would consider it more in this case. I have friends ask me all the time if they should bank, and even though I'm in the industry I do usually caution on the cost/ benefit. I'm not totally against it and if you have the money go for it.Captain Fantastic said:
There can be future advances in which stem cells could be used to treat diseases that they do not currently, but luckily there is an almost unlimited source of them out in the world and I think donations will be more common in that scenario. I would say that if you don't pay for storage, please donate. Either to a public bank or for research. All of my research starts with donated cord blood.
As to the last point about costs going down, I don't see it happening anytime soon. It requires trained operators to process, the liquid nitrogen isn't cheap, but the most cost is the insurance on the units, and making sure you comply with all the regulations.
SacramentoBob
Footballguy
They got you good.Captain Fantastic said:
Buzzbait
Footballguy
Fixed it (as it pertains to my circumstance). My wife insisted on it for both kids.
I don't think it's a scam but I also highly unlikely it will ever be needed and as Gamma mentioned there are other alternatives.
shadyridr
Footballguy
culdeus
Footballguy
If there was actually someone out there doing research on using cord blood for anything at all I would maybe consider it. The only research done is funded by the cord blood bankers and is unlikely to yield anything. More likely is that your specific cord blood isn't required and you would be able to find a match from any baby, or aborted fetus out there. It's more a playing at people's risk tolerance vs. their bankroll.
Depends on the company. That's in the ballpark though. Some companies are going to a larger upfront payment and no yearly fee approach because the number who stop paying is huge. Especially once the child is 10 or so. Also by law they can't throw the unit away for non-payment so technically you could not pay the yearly fee for 15 years and then if you need it you could pay everything at once and be guaranteed the unit.
I think it cost $2k or less for my first child, and that included a certain number of years of initial storage. I don't remember exactly how many, but he's 2 and we haven't had another bill yet.
I think we will do it for our second child too. It's not going to bankrupt us and just on the very low chance our child needs it in the future I'd like to have it. I'd rather regret getting scammed than regret not having something that could help. Of course, that kind of fear drives absurd parent spending in many different areas so I'd never criticize someone for not banking it.
culdeus
Footballguy
I've heard this also. They make such a killing on the upfront that a few suckers that keep paying is just gravy.
This is very much not true about the research part. Most of it is connected to the banks because they have access to the units, but theres no reason to believe it won't lead to anything.
I got into the matching aspect above. Right now it is very race related as to the likelihood of a match.
Also cord blood from abortions can't be used as per law.
The profit margin isn't all that high but I won't say they don't make money. It's costly for them to pay other companies to go after the non-payments though.
glvsav37
Footballguy
there was a topic on this a few years ago.
We have both my children's blood banked. Did it for the 1st one b/c one of my clients was a banking company and it was interesting to me. When we were pregnant with the 2nd one, we were debating to do it or not for him, just then....
...my daughter was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at 3 years old. I effected her knees and ankles and she could not walk for close to a year. We immediately decided to bank the new baby's blood as well. B/c The way that I see it, as long as we have it, if they ever find a cure for Arthritis and it can give my girl a chance at cutting this out of her life, then every cent I put into this would be worth it. I do not know what I would do if they did find a cure and we didn't have those cells.
I'm not trying to put a hard sell on (but here is my affiliate referral link..j/k), but for us, living with that, it is a worthwhile expense. Do i think they will find a cure that uses those cells? maybe 50/50, but if they do, I'll be the 1st one in line to defrost them.
edit to add a link to research on Cord Blood and RA
We have both my children's blood banked. Did it for the 1st one b/c one of my clients was a banking company and it was interesting to me. When we were pregnant with the 2nd one, we were debating to do it or not for him, just then....
...my daughter was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at 3 years old. I effected her knees and ankles and she could not walk for close to a year. We immediately decided to bank the new baby's blood as well. B/c The way that I see it, as long as we have it, if they ever find a cure for Arthritis and it can give my girl a chance at cutting this out of her life, then every cent I put into this would be worth it. I do not know what I would do if they did find a cure and we didn't have those cells.
I'm not trying to put a hard sell on (but here is my affiliate referral link..j/k), but for us, living with that, it is a worthwhile expense. Do i think they will find a cure that uses those cells? maybe 50/50, but if they do, I'll be the 1st one in line to defrost them.
edit to add a link to research on Cord Blood and RA
Last edited by a moderator:
culdeus
Footballguy
It's your money, free to do what you want. I blow 2 grand on stupid #### all the time. There is a better chance of saving your kids life by spending the money on changing your tires more often than this. There is ZERO way anyone ever funds or discovers a way to take your own blood, do something with it that's therapeutic, and gives it to your kid alone that can't be found in the general population. There's nothing magical about the cord blood.
Which brings me back to the matching issue above. Since not everyone donates, the chance of a match is less than 100%. You're paying to know you have a match if you need it. If everyone donated then yes the individuals blood isn't unique. But since not all HLA combos are in the public banks your statement isn't correct right now.
Brony
Footballguy
If I wasn't saving my belly button lint too, I'd probably have space for another 2 years.
Captain Fantastic
Footballguy
Now I'm no scientist, but...
The whole point of banking cord blood has little to do with the "blood" and everything to do with the stem cells contained within. Yes, it's entirely possible that stem cells from other individuals who aren't you COULD be used to great effect in treating disease/disorders/etc in your body, but matching genetic material is NOT the same as "match my blood type or just throw in some O-negative".
Talk about bone marrow transplants, there is a reason why doctors first look to a donation from a family member (parent or genetic sibling) as the likelihood of an effective match is considerably greater. Same thing with organ transplants.
The gamble on banking cord blood is that FUTURE research and discoveries could yield a tremendous benefit in having your own perfect genetic match in the stem cells. Granted, that ship has sailed (or was never even constructed) for everyone posting in this thread, but it is available for our children.
Now, I'm not a huge advocate of this and saying everyone should bank their kids' blood or they're a bad parent, but I am saying that if you can afford it, the cost may be high but the benefit may be worth it IF an unfortunate scenario ever presents itself.
We're not to that stage yet (again, it's a gamble on future tech), but if one of my kids were to be diagnosed with something in the future that could be treatable with the right genetic tissue - and if I could have banked their cord blood and didn't do it - there is no price that would be too high to return my child to health. So I spend a few thousand dollars now (and possibly forever) investing in an insurance policy that I hope and pray to never have to use (which is true of most insurance policies). But it's my kids. I may be a sucker and I may be flushing money down the cryo-toiliet, but for me, I'll do it.
The whole point of banking cord blood has little to do with the "blood" and everything to do with the stem cells contained within. Yes, it's entirely possible that stem cells from other individuals who aren't you COULD be used to great effect in treating disease/disorders/etc in your body, but matching genetic material is NOT the same as "match my blood type or just throw in some O-negative".
Talk about bone marrow transplants, there is a reason why doctors first look to a donation from a family member (parent or genetic sibling) as the likelihood of an effective match is considerably greater. Same thing with organ transplants.
The gamble on banking cord blood is that FUTURE research and discoveries could yield a tremendous benefit in having your own perfect genetic match in the stem cells. Granted, that ship has sailed (or was never even constructed) for everyone posting in this thread, but it is available for our children.
Now, I'm not a huge advocate of this and saying everyone should bank their kids' blood or they're a bad parent, but I am saying that if you can afford it, the cost may be high but the benefit may be worth it IF an unfortunate scenario ever presents itself.
We're not to that stage yet (again, it's a gamble on future tech), but if one of my kids were to be diagnosed with something in the future that could be treatable with the right genetic tissue - and if I could have banked their cord blood and didn't do it - there is no price that would be too high to return my child to health. So I spend a few thousand dollars now (and possibly forever) investing in an insurance policy that I hope and pray to never have to use (which is true of most insurance policies). But it's my kids. I may be a sucker and I may be flushing money down the cryo-toiliet, but for me, I'll do it.
bigbottom
Footballguy
They didn't have cord blood banking when my oldest son was born in '99, or if they did, it wasn't well know and we hadn't heard about it. Fast forward 12 years and my son did in fact need a stem cell transplant. Interestingly enough, he was his own donor. There are stem cells in the blood stream that can be obtained through a procedure in which blood is taken out, centrifuged to separate and remove the stem cells, and then reinserted back in the body. I'm oversimplifying things, but essentially in our situation the stem cells were later used to help restore white blood cell count after chemotherapy treatments that obliterated his immune system. Stem cells from a cord bank or bone marrow donation were not necessary. Now, I'm guessing this type of stem cell procedure does not work for all types of ailments, but it works for some of them.
massraider
Footballguy
According to the National Marrow Donor Program, properly stored cord blood should be good for up to about 10 years; after that point, researchers aren't sure how long the cells will last.Captain Fantastic said:
NorvilleBarnes
Footballguy
NorvilleBarnes
Footballguy
The sibling IS the insurance.
