Has anyone saved there "cord blood" from there baby

[JARRETT SHARK]

"will my family need stem cells is the question" . Just about to have my first child and my wife is all over me for geting this done. thought some MR members could give me there input. It cost 2k for the first year and $125 every year from there. I know it sounds good and expensive but i am old school and I did not have when I was born.Its not that I can't afford 2k but not looking to get scamed. I was told it could save you if you or your kid gets bone marrow,metabolic disorders,leukemias, lymphomas,immune systm disorders,brain tumors,etc... My family has no issues of any dieses at the momment.

Just looking for pros and cons

 

[newbie_newbie_new]

This seems to be a pretty good discussion of the pros and cons:

http://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby/features/banking-your-babys-cord-blood

My personal opinion is the odds are so low that it will ever be used that unless you're a millionaire and will never miss the money, it could probably be better spent on other things to protect and promote your child's health (for now a good car seat, safety-proofing home, lead testing, testing tap water and soil; for later, bike helmets, fresh fruits & veggies, exercise classes, education, etc).

This info was pretty enlightening: "Indisputably, there are very few documented cases of a child receiving his or her own banked cord blood as treatment. The Institute of Medicine says that there may only have been as few as 14 total of these procedures ever performed."

Just FYI, a doctor is unlikely to absolutely say you shouldn't. In the extremely remote chance that you are the 15th case, they probably won't want to get sued.

 

[JonnyJ]

To me that doest sound expensive at all. Obviously the initial 2000 is steep but 125 dollars a year? thats a little more than 10 dollars a month that can potentially save your child in the future.. My rl friend needs a marrow transplant and hasn't been successful in finding a match...she isnt doing well and if she doesn't receive one soon she will probably not make it.

 

[albano]

"will my family need stem cells is the question" ... It cost 2k for the first year and $125 every year from there... I was told it could save you if you or your kid gets bone marrow,metabolic disorders,leukemias, lymphomas,immune systm disorders,brain tumors,etc...

$2k up front and $125yr, is less than $20 a month for the first 18 yrs...sounds like CHEAP insurance to me...the progress medicine can make in those next few years seem to make it a great gamble!

 

[Josh]

We did it, and that was even with us not being able to get as much blood as is needed (due to our boys coming early).

We were on the fence if we should pay for it with a low yield and decided to do it after all.

A few doctors told us that even with the low amount of blood it was worth it because everything now is about stem cells. With the current administration allowing more research, it is a good bet that a lot more treatments will be developed based on stem cells in the near future. I mean, 10-20 years from now there will probably be a whole host of options for things to do with them.

 

[Wes]

We did it. The cost is a very small price to pay considering it could save the child or another family member's life.

If you decide not to keep it please get the donor kit and donate it so it doesn't go to waste.


Sent from my iPhone using Reefs

 

[prattreef]

We did it as well and consider it a wise decision for the future.

 

[olivier]

2 years ago we was in the same situation and we did not save the cord. I regret forever and never forgive myself in such a dumb decision. Yes, 2K up front is steep but in a long run, its cheap and potentially could save your love one. anyway, I would strongly recommend on saving the cord. 2K is big but in saltwater hobby, 2K is nothing. a few frags and few fishes will easily cost more than 2K. I rather let my fish tank look ugly and spent the money for my son/daughter. I REGRET IT EVERYDAY FOR NOT SAVING THE CORD.
Have fun with your new born and enjoy the moment.
Olivier

 

[wonderballz]

We were told that it can't be used for the current child, only subsequent children. I am not sure how accurate that is, but we donated the cord blood instead.

I would just say to read up as much as you can, both here and other sources and make your decision. If either of you have any family history of hereditary diseases, it may be a good choice, but then again, stem cell research is still in a fairly early stage. If you choose not to save it for yourself, i would defi suggest donating it.

 

[BYU]

I would definitely do it if I were you
call both cbr and viacord ask them the difference and compare
I actually went for viacord

 

[tynman]

Well 4 kids later a few doctor's were trying to sell this to me but not one could tell me how this would help me or my kids.. They just told me I sould do it.. The a guy at work did it and told me it was worth it I sould do it but his second my forth I'm not going to buy his sales pitch...LOL so I think its to pricey. I have all the blood and anything else they need to test in my body and my wifes body we did make the kids... Had to come from us... So my kids are healthy and going through the normal things like wise ass isum... but its all fun.. Good luck with the new one get some sleep now!!!!

 

[OGGISPORTS]

I have a baby coming any day now and me and my wife did it

 

[ClosetFishGeek]

2k is nothing for that small % chance that it might help your child or even you in the future. Think about this for a second you probably dropped that easily into your reef tank..... :irked: If you cannot afford it up front that is fine they have financing options for your family as well. I recently did it for my daughter....and I would not think twice about it. As a matter of fact I payed for 24 years up front to get the deepest discount. It was almost a thousand dollars cheaper and at least at that point hopefully my child can take over the payments.....

 

[House of Laughter]

2k is nothing for that small % chance that it might help your child or even you in the future.

Thane et al, I can't agree with you more.

My mother in law had MS and her doctor was working on breakthrough research using stem cells and staving off the progress of MS. Needless to say, we did it in the hopes that my mother in law may be cured.

While the research they did with it and working with my MIL prolonged her life, it couldn't save it. The loss of muscle control eventually left her with heart failure.

The moral of the story is, my kids knew their grandmother - that's more than I can say for my Mom, or Dad or any grandparent from my side of the family.

If it helps a family member, your own kid or even you for just a day or a week, so that they can remember those family members or the times they spent for thier lifetime - you tell me how much that is worth :shocked:

Nuff said!!

Jim

 

[UnknownWaters]

Correct me if im wrong but if you have more than 1 child from the same parents dont they all share the same gene pool? so kinda like 1 chevy to another chevy the parts are kinda interchangable IMO. Death sucks any way you slice it and have already carried 1 small 24 x 10 inch casket myself ther are many things cord blood and stem cell research cant fix. got money to burn? invest it in research. and when we say $2000 upfront and $125 a month do I get a group discount with 5 kids? and why did'nt any of the docs that delivered my kids try to sell it to me? 5 kids @ $2000 each and $125 a month would have only set me back $145000.00 in the long run maybe for you families with 1 kid and no spare parts go for it best of luck but for a commoner like myself I'll pass.

 

[JARRETT SHARK]

I hope I did not come off saying 2k was not worth it for me and my family,what I meant to say is I just did not want to waste 2k on something that people think was a scam. My family does not have any history of dieses so I thought It was not the best for me..My wife also told me that there are even certein doctors who can only do this procedure if it was ever to happen, Also its not 100% that it will work also. I see more people here say to do it so I guess there are more cons then I thought.

Keep these pros and cons coming so it can change my mind 100%

 

[Josh]

Correct me if im wrong but if you have more than 1 child from the same parents dont they all share the same gene pool? so kinda like 1 chevy to another chevy the parts are kinda interchangable IMO.

No, it doesn't work that way. Each child has unique genetics and only certain portions are shared between them. If you think about it, it is even likely that your children may not be able to exchange blood based on something as simple as incompatible blood type.

 

[Josh]

I hope I did not come off saying 2k was not worth it for me and my family,what I meant to say is I just did not want to waste 2k on something that people think was a scam. My family does not have any history of dieses so I thought It was not the best for me.

Jarrett, your family having diseases has little to do with it. Your child is only 50% you and if you have a recessive gene and your wife has a recessive gene, your child inherits and can exhibit that "trait". So if your family is healthy, it only indicates that no one has exhibited a genetic issue with those genes yet.

Second, regarding the price, we actually found a friend of the family who sells for CBR and gave us a $600 discount. You might want to ask around if anyone you know has done it before, you can probably get a referral discount.

In total, it isn't in any way a scam, it just hasn't demonstrated any successful uses thus far. The technology is somewhat new and the previous Bush administration set the research back 8 years at least.

 

[JHOV2324]

DUDE dont do it...they want those cells so they can make clones of you and your baby.....:theyareon

 

[OBTEPPER]

Stem cells

Most of my patients do it (viacord or CBR), and I did it for my own children. Mount Sinai and Cornell now have FREE stem cell donation banks where you can donate your child's stem cells. If a patient can't afford the private companies, I certainly recommend this option to them. The problem with the hospital's stem cell bank is that you don't own them so that if they don't approve of an experimental treatment you can't have access to them. If somebody who has contributed to the bank needs your cells then the hospital has the right to give your cells to that patient. The bottom line is that the chance of you ever needing stem cells for your child or a family member is exceedingly small. It would be more cost effective medicine to buy side air bags for your car, but the key is the future. Stem cells will one day help cure all forms of malignacies and illnesses and that is why I recommend that my patients do it.