We encourage you to consider donating your cord blood for valuable life-saving transplants and research.
Donating your cord blood is free, painless, and it won’t disrupt your birth plan!
Participating provider offices will include information about the Upstate Cord Blood Bank program in your prenatal packet. You will need to complete and mail the donation forms before you deliver.
Before your baby is born, we also recommend that you inform your provider of your decision to donate with us.
Here is what you need to know about the process:
You will receive a rack or palm card at your initial prenatal visit. This introduces you to our cord blood donation program and provides you with our number for any questions you may have.
Please call us at 315-492-2600 with any questions regarding our program or facility.
You will receive our Cord Blood Donation Guide that includes information about cord blood donation and the forms you will need to complete and sign to donate.
The required forms included are:
- Informed Consent for the Donation of Cord Blood
- Health History Questionnaire
Feel free to contact us with any questions regarding these forms!
Once you have decided to donate, send your completed and signed forms to the Upstate Cord Blood Bank using the postage-paid envelope included in the Cord Blood Donation Guide.
Feel free to contact us with any questions regarding the Informed Consent and the Health History Questionnaire!
Upon receipt, our staff will check your forms over for completeness and forward them to your delivering hospital.
If you are unable to mail your completed and signed forms prior to delivery, you may bring them with you to the hospital at the time of your delivery.
All of our cord blood collection kits are stored at each of our participating hospitals; no additional advanced preparation is necessary.
Delaying cord clamping does not exclude you from being able to donate. If you wish to do both, please contact our office or your provider to discuss the best course of action.
Donating your placenta does not exclude you from also donating your cord blood. You can do both!
Cord blood banked for public use is collected directly after the baby's delivery. The umbilical cord is clamped and cut, and your provider extracts the blood from the umbilical vein into a sterile collection bag. There is no pain to you or your baby and the entire donation will be collected in 5-7 minutes.
The nursing staff and our couriers will ensure that the cord blood unit is sent directly to our facility where it is processed, tested, and stored for future use.
Each cord blood unit that has been donated and meets the strict guidelines for transplant will be listed on national and worldwide registries to be made available for patients in need of a life-saving treatment. However, cord blood units that are not suitable for transplantation will be used for research locally at Upstate Medical University, nationally and internationally with consent of the mother.
Other Recommendations
The health of you and your baby is important to us. We do not recommend donating under the following conditions:
- You are less than 36 weeks pregnant at the time of delivery.
- You have received no prenatal care prior to delivery.
- You are having multiple babies (ex. twins, triplets).
- You are less than 18 years old at the time of delivery.
