Odds that a family will ever need their banked cord blood are so low that people shouldn't bother doing it.

Fact: Considering that the cause of most cancers is unknown and that the science of stem cell therapy is expanding rapidly, it is difficult to accurately calculate the odds that a family will use the cord blood or benefit from new treatments. However, according to medical research, the odds that a child will someday need to use his or her own newborn stem cells for current treatments are estimated at 1 in 400*. Odds that the newborn or a family member may benefit from banked cord blood are estimated at 1 in 200*. These odds do not include the emerging and potential use of newborn stem cells to treat heart disease, diabetes, Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, and spinal cord injury. The continued progress in medical treatments would greatly increase the likelihood of use by your baby throughout her life. Based on current data, there is no "expiration date" for newborn stem cells.

*Pasquini MC, Logan BR, Verter F, et al. The Likelihood of Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (HCT) in the United States: Implications for Umbilical Cord Blood Storage. Blood. 2005;106(11)

"What was a discard has become valuable-indeed priceless to many children with leukemia, and perhaps in the future to children with AIDS and autoimmune diseases, such as diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis."

- Science, Vol. 268, May 12, 1995