Cord blood banking is the process whereby blood is collected from a newborn’s umbilical cord immediately following delivery and  the viable sterm cells cryogenically stored,
potentially for future medical use.

Subsequent to childbirth, the umbilical cord is cut, and blood is retained by the blood vessels of the placenta as well as the remaining part of the umbilical cord attached to it, known as placental blood or umbilical cord blood. Unfortunately this blood(known as placental blood or umbilical card blood), which is rich in stem cells, is commonly disposed of after birth as a medical waste.

Thousands of families are banking their newborns' cord blood because it contains valuable stem cells that are unique to the newborn, and genetically related to their families. Cord blood banking allows parents to preserve these valuable stem cells as a precautionary measure, should the need for treatment of conditions such as cancers, genetic metabolic diseases, blood and immunological disorders ever arises in the future.

Storing your baby's stem cells could be seen as a natural life insurance policy for the potential use of stem cell technologies through a variety of applications that are currently under investigation by research scientists. Research into stem cells technology is rapidly progressing, and revealing the diversity of a therapeutic role for cord blood.

It has been shown that umbilical cord blood stem cells can be safely stored for many years. For example, recent studies have demonstrated that even samples which have remained in storage for longer than 25 years, have retained therapeutic viability.

In this modern age, the collection and storage of umbilical cord blood is an opportunity parents should be aware of and give due consideration when deciding on their family’s future, as it could prove to be a worthwhile investment in the event of an emergency.