Cord blood is a miraculous fluid found in the placenta and the umbilical cord of the mother during the pregnancy period.

This blood has turned out to be a godsend for the research related to the medical science. This is because the cord blood has got a huge number of versatile stem cells which are used in the treatment of various fatal diseases like leukaemia, cancers, sickle cell anaemia, blood cancer etc. These stem cells are also required for building up various worn out and damaged organs and tissues of the human body life that of heart. Cord blood also rules over the bone marrow transplant therapy in many aspects.

Thus cord blood banks have been established for the storage of the cord blood sometimes termed as placenta blood also. Before donating the cord blood, the parents must make sure where to donate, whether at the private cord blood bank or public cord blood bank.

It is understood that public cord blood banks are basically non profitable and for the benefits of other people while on the other hand, private cord blood banks run on the mercantile bases. In private cord blood banks, cord blood is stored solely for the need of the donor’s child and family. Considered as a standard cord blood bank, public blood bank does not impose any fee structure for the donation of cord blood but in the private cord blood banks, some fee is charged from the donor for storage of the cord blood.

Public cord blood banks own your cord blood and register you in their list for the case of withdrawal of the cord blood when needed but at the other side, private cord blood banks lead you to be the owner of your baby’s cord blood and when in need, you can get the same blood for your baby .

You cannot retrieve your baby’s cord blood in future through the public blood bank. Usage of cord blood from public cord blood banks is basically based on the compatibility of the stem cell in the blood of the donor with that of the recipient. Public cord blood banks run over the money collected by selling the blood or by the medical insurances.

As the private cord blood banks ask for high fee for the collection and storage, these banks can be afforded by only few people of the society.

Though the fight goes on between the private and public cord blood banks, it is necessary for the parents to realise the importance of the cord blood and its uses. They should donate the cord blood so that it could be of utter advantage to their young ones in the future. Both the banks have their merits and demerits and thus there is a need to make a proper decision for donating the cord blood. Various dialogues have been said on the issue of the selection of the cord blood bank, but the aim of both remains the same.

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