When making the decision to privately bank your baby’s cord blood for you and your family vs. donating your baby’s cord blood to a public bank there are many things to consider. Regardless of your choice we believe that cord blood should not be discarded, just thrown away. Below we have broken down some important topics for you to consider.
| Private Cord Blood Banking | Public Cord Blood Donation | |
|---|---|---|
| Your Rights To Your Baby’s Cord Blood | Guarantees your baby’s stem cell storage for you and your family. | Increases the national supply of stem cells. You have no rights to those stem cells. |
| Cost For Collection | You pay an initial processing fee The National average for private banking is $2000. There is a yearly storage fee. The average fee for storage is $125. | No cost. There is no fee for the collection nor is there a fee paid for the donation. |
| Collection Sites | Collection can occur at any hospital. | Limited. Public banks do not collect at every hospital. |
| Access For Retrieval | Ensured. You control the use of your baby’s stem cells. | Unknown. Public banks work on a first come, first served basis. If you needed your cells chances are they will have already been used by someone else. Approximately 40% of the donated cord blood meets the criteria to process and store; the other donated samples are discarded or donated to research. So, there is a high likelihood that a specific sample will not be in the public bank’s inventory. |
| Cost To Retrieve Stem Cells | None. | Costs can range for $15,000 to $25,000 per unit. |
| Availability Of Stem Cells | Outcomes are twice as successful when using your own stem cells. | A search and match process can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months; ultimately, a match may not be found. |
| Transplant Outcomes | Outcomes are twice as successful when using your own stem cells. | Outcomes are lower using an unrelated sample that a genetically related cord blood stem cells. Complications are significantly increased using unrelated stem cells. |