Umbilical Cord Blood Banking: A New Birth Option for Your Family

Abstract

"Modern medicine has brought about a new and exciting birth option for expectant parents--Umbilical Cord Blood Banking. 'Cord blood' is the blood that remains in a baby's umbilical cord and placenta immediately following birth. Recent medical breakthroughs have shown that cord blood can be used instead of bone marrow to treat a variety of cancers and blood diseases like leukemia, lymphoma, and aplastic anemia. For years it has been routinely discarded, but now, expectant parents are choosing to collect and bank their newborn's cord blood win case of future need. Called 'biological insurance' by some, cord blood is an exact match for the baby from which it's collected and may possibly be useful in treating other family members." [Description from the cassette box] This video is a companion video to "Cord Blood Banking: Information for the Caregiver."