There are so many questions that parents find themselves asking before, during, and after pregnancy. What stroller should you buy, or which kind of diapers should you get?
There’s one more thing that you should consider, and that is whether you should bank your baby’s cord blood or not. The process has become quite popular in recent years, and you may have even seen some information regarding it in your doctor’s office.
Let’s cover some of the basics of cord banking. We'll also look at the top 10 cord blood banking companies in the world.
Cord Blood and Cord Blood Banking
Cord blood is essentially the extra blood that is left in the umbilical cord and placenta after the cord has been severed. Your baby does not need this blood after they’ve been born, but it does contain cells that can heal sick babies.
Cord blood consists of all of the properties found in regular blood, but it’s unique in that it is rich in hematopoietic stem cells. These are special cells that form blood, and they are similar to the ones found in the bone marrow.
They can be used to treat a variety of diseases that your baby might face. Cord blood banking is an extremely simple, totally painless procedure that could end up saving lives.
The blood is harvested right after the mother has given birth, and it is stored afterward, generally in a frozen state. When it is stored correctly, cord blood has the potential to last indefinitely.
Cord blood banking isn’t new, even though it has received more attention recently. It has been used to treat major illnesses since the ‘80s, and professionals are still learning how it can help treat even more disorders, such as autism, cerebral palsy, and heart birth defects.
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Top 10 Cord Blood Banking Companies
Here are the 10 best cord blood banking companies you can look at in the world.
ViaCord
ViaCord is based in Waltham, Massachusetts, and is the 2nd-largest cord blood banking company on the planet. They have stored over 300,000 cord tissue and cord blood units.
The company was founded by Cynthia Fisher in 1993. At 90%, it has the highest percentage of successful treatments using prepared cord blood cells in the region.
Cord Blood Registry
The Cord Blood Registry is found in San Bruno, California, and it was founded by Tom Moore and Wendy Grant in 1992. They’ve been in the business for over 20 years.
They are the only company in the area with their own storage facility, and they are also the biggest cord blood banking company in the world. This company has stored over 500,000 units to date.
China Cord Blood Corporation
CCBC is based in Daxing, Beijing, and is the quickest-growing cord blood banking company in the world. They are also the biggest cord blood bank in the country, and they control over 50% of the cord blood market share in China in terms of units stored.
Cryo-Cell
This company is based in Oldsmar, Florida, and is the 3rd-largest cord blood banking company on the planet. They have stored more than 240,000 units to date.
While they only began storing cord blood units in 1992, the company was founded in 1989. This actually made it the first cord blood bank in the world.
Cryo-Save
Cryo-Save is based in Zutphen in the Netherlands, and it is Europe’s largest cord blood banker. They have over 250,000 units in storage, and the company was established in 2000.
CordVida
CordVida is a Brazillian company that is based in Sao Paulo. It is also South America’s largest blood banking corporation.
CordVida was the first cord blood bank in the country to offer services for tissue storage. The company was started in May of 2012 via a partnership with AuxoCell Laboratories, Inc.
New York Cord Blood Program
The NYCBP is the world’s largest non-profit cord blood banking company, and it began operating in 1992. They have over 60,000 cord blood units in their facility, and they collect around 7,000 units annually.
CryoHoldco
This is the market-leading company in Latin America, and it is also one of the largest banks on the planet. The company is approximately 5 times larger than all other cord blood cell banks in Latin America, and they store over 125,000 cord blood units.
Americord
Another cord blood bank found in NYC, this company reached a 2,200% growth rate in the last three years. This makes it one of the quickest-growing cord blood banks on the planet.
Vita34
Based in Leipzig, Germany, Vita34 was founded in 1997 and was also the first cord blood bank to be founded in Europe. They have been operating for almost 20 years, and they store about 150,000 units.
Summary
Cord blood banking is a completely painless and quick process that can save the lives of you and your baby. If you get the chance, you should definitely consider having the procedure done.
