Can A Parent Use A Child’s Cord Blood?

Cord blood banking is usually for both a newborn and for the existing family members. But, Can A Parent Use a Child’s Cord Blood?” Yes, blood-related family members can use the baby’s cord blood as long as their HLA (Human Leukocyte Antigens)  matches.

Can I use my child’s cord blood?

The parent of a newborn can use the child’s cord blood so long as their HLAs match. 

HLA is short for Human Leukocyte Antigens and is responsible for making the body’s immune system react to foreign cells. 

These cells include bacteria and viruses. 

Before a parent can use their child’s cord blood, they’d need to go through HLA typing, which matches a donor to a patient. 

Essentially, HLA is a marker or protein located on most cells within the body. 

Thus, a person’s immune system uses these proteins to match the cells that belong within the body or not.

Can you use cord blood for grandparents?

A baby’s cord blood is essential, enabling other family members such as parents, siblings, and even grandparents to use it. 

The blood type of the baby and grandparents don’t need to match before they can use the child’s cord blood. 

Rather, recipients only need a matching HLA with that of the child; they can be safe to use the cord blood.

Which family members can use cord blood?

Family members that can use cord blood include siblings, parents, and grandparents. 

There is a 75% chance of matching HLA (25% possibility of a perfect match and 50% possibility of a partial match). 

Also, there’s another 25% possibility of the two not matching.

Each parent has a 50% possibility of matching the child’s HLA for the parents. 

However, as you progress further from the immediate family, the matching possibility of HLAs reduces. 

Can cord blood be used for adults?

Adults, as well as children, can use the cord blood. 

Noting the high effectiveness of cord blood in the human body, the first thing to ensure is that both parties have to match HLAs. 

Also, it’s worth highlighting that, as an adult, the number of stem cells within the baby’s cord blood might be insufficient.

Adult recipients might need to consider having multiple donors for effective treatment of diseases or disorders. 

How is cord blood collected?

Remarkably, the process of collecting cord blood is painless and effortless. 

Before a mother gives birth, it’s important to get the kit already set.

The cord blood collection kit will comprise everything your midwife will require for collecting the child’s cord blood. 

After childbirth, the umbilical cord will be first clamped and cut before the midwife can input a needle into the baby’s umbilical cord to draw the blood and store it in a unique bag. 

Mothers can bring the kit for cord blood collection alongside them to the hospital. 

Now all that’s left to do is to contact any known cord blood bank that will assist in packing and picking up the cord blood collection kit from the hospital. 

Then, they’ll transport the collected cord blood to the lab to be processed and stored.

Then in future, parents can use their kid’s cord blood given that their HLA matches.