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The collection and storage of umbilical cord blood has become increasingly common. The process is fairly easy but can be costly. If an expectant parent wants to collect the umbilical cord blood from their newborn, they need to make arrangements with a cord blood bank by the 34th week of pregnancy. There are both public and private banks that can collect and store umbilical cord blood. Public cord blood banks take donated cord blood that then can be transplanted to someone in need. Private cord blood banks are for-profit operations where parents pay a fee to have their child's umbilical cord blood stored for future use.
Directly after birth, umbilical cord blood can be collected from both the umbilical cord and the placenta. The umbilical cord must be clamped right away though, before it stops pulsing, to get the most cord blood for storage. At least 75 ml is required to create a sample adequate for storage and possible transplantation. However, clamping the cord before it stops pulsing is not necessarily beneficial for the newborn baby. The baby needs all of that blood to support her during this very vulnerable time of transition from the womb to the world. Generally cord blood collection will divert 100ml (almost 1/2 of the baby's total blood volume) of blood, along with all of the antibodies, blood cells and stem cells contained in the collection, away from the newborn baby.
The umbilical cord blood can be collected in-utero or ex-utero. In-utero means the blood is collected from the placental vein prior to the birth of the placenta but after the birth of the baby. Ex-utero means the cord blood is collected after the placenta is also born. The placenta is placed in a sterile supporting structure and the blood is gravity fed from the umbilical cord. Once the umbilical cord blood is collected, the placenta is couriered to the stem cell laboratory where additional stem cells can be harvested.
Once the collection is complete it must be taken immediately to the cord blood bank. There it is processed, and if it is a public cord blood bank, the sample is also tested for potentially harmful genetic disorders and viruses. Then, the umbilical cord blood is cryopreserved. A cryopreservant is added to the cord blood to support the cells survival during the cryogenic process. The umbilical cord blood is slowly cooled to -90C and then is added to a liquid nitrogen tank. This tank will keep the cord blood frozen at a temperature of -196C until it is needed. Researchers say that cord blood can potentially be kept like this indefinitely and still be viable for use as an option for treatment.
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