There are two kinds of umbilical cord blood banking. Private (or sometimes called “family”) cord blood banking is storing the baby's cord blood for his/her own future use, or use for a family member should the need arise. Alternatively, public cord blood banking, or donating, means that the baby's cord blood is stored in a cord blood bank and is available to anyone in need of a transplant, or, may be used for research purposes.
If your child's blood has been stored at a private bank, the cord blood stem cells have the potential to be used by siblings, and sometimes parents, if there's an adequate match. In such cases the probability of an adequate match is 100% for the child, and 75% for siblings. Private cord blood banking is often encouraged when a full sibling in the family has a medical condition (malignant or genetic) that could potentially benefit from cord blood transplantation. Stem cells from a related source is normally preferred over a non-related source for treatments; transplants using cord blood from a family member are twice as successful as transplants using cord blood from a non-relative.
Umbilical cord blood is always collected at birth. The collection process is safe and painless for both the mother and baby, and does not interfere with delivery. After collection, the blood is prepared and then cryogenically stored. Research into how long cryogenically stored stem cells last is still on-going; however it is established that stem cells are still viable after 15 years of storage. It's important to note that cord blood stem cells are different from embryonic stem cells, and so are non-controversial, and removed from ethical debate. Banking a baby's cord blood preserves what would normally be discarded.
If think you'd like to donate umbilical cord blood, it's important to consult with your physician, who will help you make an informed decision. The professional staff at Contemporary Obstetrics & Gynecology will also be happy to help you with any questions you may have. Or, you can learn more about umbilical cord blood banking from the Parents Guide to Cord Blood Foundation.