How to Choose a Proper Cord Blood Bank
Finding the best cord blood banks is exceptionally crucial. If the cord bank does not include the best standards for shipping, handling, and storing the cord blood, then the blood will become unusable to use in the future. If your bank is not financially stable, god knows how and where they will store the cord blood in the long term and how much it will be affected. Whatever cold blood bank you select should pass the FDA inspection according to their standards and practices.
The physicians working in clinical trials and transplant centers should follow strict guidelines before using cord blood for medical therapy. If there is any day in the future when your child needs cord blood, you will be sure about where to get it. Now the most daunting task is how to select the cord blood bank perfect for your family. Well, let you take a quick look into some of the aspects that you should verify before hiring any cord blood bank provider.
• Experience
The total number of cord blood units that the organization has released during the transplant will speak its success. They can undeniably deliver feasible stem cells whenever you need them. So always select the service of that cord blood bank that has released more than a thousand blood samples during the transplant.
• Inventory
Inventory is another way to decide which the best cord blood bank is. The bank with the largest units of cord blood stored in their facility is considered to be the best. There are some banks in the USA with more than one million cord blood units.
• Stability
The cord blood bank should include the experience of at least ten years of storing the cord blood sample. They should also include an established laboratory as it is more convenient and stable to use, compared to the cord banks, which always switch between the laboratory partners after every few years.
• Insurance
One of the biggest concerns for the parent is whether the cord blood will remain viable for the transplant after years. Some banks provide insurance programs that will deliver assistance to the parents when they need blood samples from the cord. Most reputed banks even give a financial guarantee of nearly 100000 dollars on their cord blood capability to engraft.
• Accreditation
Accreditation status indicates the quality standards that the cord blood bank holds in storing the sample. There are two accreditations specifically designed for the best cord blood banks which are FACT and AABB. In the USA, the most reliable cord blood banks, registered with the FDA. The banks should also adhere to all the standards of the BLA or Biological License Application.
• Shipment
Live stem cell tends to degrade with time, especially whenever they are exposed to extreme heat or temperatures for a long time. These situations include the cold of the cargo hold of an airplane or the summer heat of the loading dock. The would-be parents should check out all the insulation and materials, the cord blood bank will use for the transportation and collection of the kit. It is always better to select a bank that will offer the kit validated for maintaining a stable temperature inside it, irrespective of the extreme temperature prevailing outside.
• Pricing
The cost of storing the cord blood sample is a concern for the new parents, especially as it comes at a time when they are facing various other new expenses. Thus it is best to select the service of the most reliable cord blood bank provider who offers the best rates to you. The various payment plans like the EMI can lower the expense of stem cell banking at reasonable monthly rates. These EMIs will be lower even than your monthly electricity bills.
• Cord Blood Processing
Agencies associated with the storing of the cord blood have a restricted time panel of 48 hours between the birth of the child and processing of the cord blood for the cryonic storage. So you should verify this detail with your bank before signing off the contract.