Rosie Pope: A Special Gift This Season – Cord Blood Banking | The ViaCord Blog

A Special Gift This Season- Cord Blood Banking

This blog post was sponsored by ViaCord.

 Tis’ the season for holiday cheer, beautifully wrapped boxes adorned with colorful bows, and the inevitable  question, “Rosie, what’s a special gift that I can give my pregnant friend or family member this holiday  season?” It’s hard to think of a truly unique gift that will last far longer than the day it is opened and so I  have one idea for you this season that is truly unique and special.

 Okay so this may sound a bit strange at first, but I think considering the gift of cord blood banking for your  pregnant loved one is really compelling and certainly very unique. If you take a little time to learn more  about cord blood stem cells you’ll understand why it’s so special.
 Let me explain. The blood within a newborn’s umbilical cord contains young stem cells that can renew  themselves and become specialized. These cord blood stem cells have been proven in treatment to help  children replace damaged blood cells with healthy ones and strengthen their immune systems. Nearly 80  life-threatening diseases — from cancers to blood diseases to immune disorders — can use cord blood stem  cells in treatment.¹ And thanks to advancements in research its treatment potential continues to expand.  Clinical trials using cord blood stem cells are currently underway for serious health conditions such as Cerebral Palsy, Autism and Type 1 Diabetes.²

Cord blood banking is the process of collecting and storing cord blood stem cells for potential medical use. It’s become an increasingly popular choice among parents over the past twenty years. With all the gear and supplies your pregnant friend or family member is already getting, having a loved one give this for the holidays is truly special. So how does it work?

Whether it’s a natural birth or C-section, the process of collecting a newborn’s stem cells is safe, painless, and non-disruptive to mom and baby. After the baby is born, the umbilical cord is clamped and cut as it normally is. The medical professional will then insert a needle into the umbilical cord to collect the remaining blood in a special collection bag. Once the collection is finished the bag is sealed and shipped to a processing lab where the stem cells are extracted and cryogenically frozen. From start to finish, the cord blood collection process takes about five minutes.

If giving the gift of cord blood banking with ViaCord is something you want to do for a loved one, it’s an incredibly easy process. Simply call ViaCord to enroll and a collection kit will be mailed to the expecting family. The family will bring the kit to the hospital on the big day! After the cord blood collection is complete ViaCord sends a courier to pick up the kit at the hospital. It’s then shipped to ViaCord’s state-of-the-art processing and storage lab, where upon arrival, lab specialists work diligently to extract the stem cells before they are transferred to a cryobag for freezing. For over twenty years, ViaCord has been providing the highest quality, umbilical cord blood stem cell collections for families and has processed and preserved the cord blood of nearly 350,000 newborns. When it comes to cord blood banking, experience and reputation matter.

It may turn out that your friend is already planning to bank her baby’s cord blood. If that’s the case, find out if she has a cord blood gift registry – another popular choice among families who have decided to bank. A cord blood gift registry allows friends and family to contribute to the cost of banking, giving loved ones the opportunity share in something truly unique. Making a contribution towards the cost of banking is just as meaningful (and helpful).

When you give the gift of cord blood banking, or contribute to a cord blood gift registry, you’re giving a truly unique and thoughtful gift. It’s an amazing gift and an amazing area of scientific advancement. Now what could be more special than that?

To learn more about cord blood banking visit www.viacord.com.

Rosie is co-founder and creative director of Rosie Pope Maternity, Rosie Pope Baby and MomPrep.  She is also most proudly mom to 4 and when she’s not working or chauffeuring her kids around in their prized mini-van she is attempting to build the most epic train track, disguised as a Ninja Turtle or brewing another cup of coffee!

Disclaimer: Banking cord blood does not guarantee that treatment will work and only a doctor can determine when it can be used. Research is ongoing. For more details and references, www.viacord.com/references

References:

1. 
   Currently, cord blood has been used in the treatment of nearly 80 diseases.

Moise K Jr. Umbilical cord stem cells. Obstet Gynecol. 2005;106(6):1393-1407.

Data on file. PerkinElmer, Inc. Most of the diseases on this list are inherited genetic diseases. Typically, these treatments require a donor transplant, such as from a sibling. If your child needs a donor, a family member is always the first-choice source. Treatments for cancers like neuroblastoma can use a child’s own cord blood. Although the potential use of newborn stem cells is expanding rapidly, the odds a family member without a defined risk will need to use their child’s stem cells are low. Banking cord blood does not guarantee that treatment will be effective and only a treating physician can determine when it can be used.

2. 
   Harris DT, Badowski M, Ahmad N, Gaballa MA. The potential of cord blood stem cells for use in regenerative medicine. Expert Opin Biol Ther. 2007;7(9):1311–1322. National Institutes of Health, ClinicalTrials.gov. Umbilical cord blood infusion to treat type 1 diabetes.http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00305344. Accessed September 11, 2012. National Institutes of Health, ClinicalTrials.gov. A randomized study of autologous umbilical cord blood reinfusion in children with cerebral palsy. http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT1147653. Identifier NCT01147653.

Accessed September 11, 2012