Umbilical cord blood is looked on favorably by transplant specialists because its matching requirements are not as demanding as bone marrow’s and the chances of rejection are less than they are with the stem cells from bone marrow.

If you have a child with leukemia or another disease that may be treatable by transplant and you are pregnant, talk with your oncologist or pediatrician about saving your baby’s cord blood. Some companies offer free collection, processing and storage to expectant families who have a child who might benefit from a cord blood transplant using a sibling’s cord blood. One such program does not require that the child with the illness is at a disease stage that requires a stem cell (bone marrow) transplant. The link below takes you to information on this program.