Viacord~ are you doing it?

Does anyone have an opinion on this? I get info in the mail all the time. I did not do it for my son. Do you think this a "must" to do?

I thought about it and did a little research. Here is my problem with the cord blood banking: you can't use it if your kid has a disease like cancer or whatever, because it is in that cord blood. You might be able to use it on another child who has a disease that cord blood could cure, if they are compatible. Now, it might be useful in YEARS if they ever figure out how to grow additional limbs or they can use it to regenerate a spinal cord or something to that effect, but if you only have one child, and that child contracts a disease, they can't use their own blood, so what is the purpose of paying that money for it? KWIM?

I've been considering doing the free donation, not the private storage, so that it might be able to help someone later on. I don't want to spend money banking it for personal use, but if someone can get use out of it and it's free to donate, I don't see why not. It's not like I'm going to keep the cord or anything!

I'm not.

Lisa, in past deliveries I haven't noticed this but my dh has. He said that as soon as the baby is out there is a massive rush by the ob and nurses to get that cord blood collected asap. I've never asked where they send it or what they do with it. I wonder if this is standard if you do not have your own kit.

I don't see why they wouldn't collect it if the parents don't want to store it privately. If it has the potential to help people in the future, and it's just going to go in the garbage cam, it makes sense for them to keep it. Now I'll have to look out for the scramble in March!

I will not be doing it. I looked in to with Caitlin and it was pretty $$$$.

"The cost of ViaCord's processing service $2,070 plus $125 for annual storage, for a total of $2,195 payable over 12 months."

Yeah I will pass. Not that it is not a good thing it is just out of my price range.

Yes, and we did it with Olivia as well. We used CryoCell. If anyone is interested I have some referral forms that will save you some money. We got a good deal this time around, I believe it was closer to $1300, not the $2000 someone mentioned above.

For us its just like an Insurance Policy, if I can read one success story about it I am sold, thats just the type of person I am, if I might have the ability to save my child's life I have to take it. Its a very personal decision and isn't affordable for everyone so I totally understand why most people don't do it.

I had no idea it was so expensive! I have not researched it at all, that is why I asked here. It sounds like there may be some controversy about it. I will have to research it more. I feel like I can't even afford to do it! If it would save a child's life, why would it not be available people of all incomes to do it? It seems like only the financially fortunate would have access to this. I would pay any amount to save my child's life, but not knowing if it would really help I would hesitate. Are there proven cases that the cord blood has saved children?

I did the free donation option in 2000 and it felt good knowing that it might go to someone who needs it. Not every hospital does it though and i had to fill out a permission form first. They sent out the sample.

Shannon,

Yes there are cases, and the developments in this area of research are moving quickly, but like others said, there are situations where your own child's won't work, in the case of some cancers, because the cancer might be in the cord blood as well, what I don't know is whether they can test it and in some cases it might work? I don't know every detail about it either. I agree, its outrageous, it shouldn't be so expensive, we saved for it with both pregnancies, I am so risk adverse that this is one thing that was important to me.

I wish they could great a solution that would allow everyone to donate (at least those that agreed) so that everyone could have it as a resource when their child was sick, almost like a transplant registry, or something like that, but I am sure there would be issues with that as well, such as 'who is sicker and needs it more'? Who knows, clearly I am not an expert at this

we wont be doing it either. I think if you or dh have a history of diease in your family then its totally worth doing it but neither me or dh have any history of cancer or anything else that the blood is used for so we are gonna opt put on it.

Sarina,

The card I have says its $1395. The code to use is HG08, it said it has to be used by Jan 31, 08, but I just got it, so that must be a typo, it should be Jan 31, 09.

Let me know if you are interested. It has a phone number and I could always mail it to you.

Leigh

My IP's are not banking the blood and we have not done it for our 3 children. If we had tons more money, we would probably consider it.

However, anyone who is in the position to donate it, please do! I had just recently seen something about this and wanted to do it with this baby since the IP's aren't banking the blood, but since I live in MT it makes it too difficult.

The reason I ask for people to please consider donating: We have a neice (neices brother is actually the family connection) who is now 6 and needing a BMT for Combined ImmunoDefeciency. It doesn't work for her since she needs the viruses adults accumulate to actually help her situation. But, we have attended many drives up here trying to find her a donor. She is actually coming home from a failed attempt tue (the donor for some reason isn't viable, the don't say why, just no more donor). This is so hard for her family. They live about 3 hours from us in MT and where they need to go for the BMT is in Cincinatti and had planned on being gone for 5-6 months. Since the donor failed (thank goodness before she had her immune system totally suppressed) she gets to come home until another is found.

The hard part about her coming back just for the getting to see her part, our oldest DD is the same age and calls her her best friend. We have to tell our DD that she can't hug her BF and can't even be too close to her. Its a good thing I have some old videos of them holding hands skipping through stores.

Okay, I'm babbeling. I just wish so much that there was more that I could do for them. Thank you for anyone who actually got through my whole sphell!!

Jen

We are donating our baby's cord blood..

We are banking. My husband's brother died from leukemia...and we would feel guilty about not spending the money if something were to happen to her. Unless she comes super early- and in that case we are going to have the doctors not cut the cord until it stops pulsing so she gets all the benefits of the cord blood immediately.

I have been debating. I would feel so guilty if I didnt and something happened to him, but the money is a bit of an issue. Why do they make it cost so much to save a life????

We didn't bank it for DS #1 who was born in the U.S., but we did donate it at his birth in 2000. Like April said, we had to fill out a form, but I feel good knowing that maybe somewhere down the line it can be used. Living in Peru obviously hasn't given us the option to do it for the past 2 births, nor this one. I think if you have the funds to do it, it definitely can't hurt in the long run.

Stacey