How Cord Blood Banking Works, Step by Step
Cord blood banking sounds technical, but the actual process is quick, painless, and happens entirely after your baby is delivered. Here's what's going on behind the scenes.
1. You enroll before delivery
Most banks ask you to enroll by the third trimester. They'll mail a collection kit you bring with you to the hospital.
2. Collection happens right after birth
Once the umbilical cord has been clamped and cut, a clinician draws blood from the cord into a sterile bag. The whole process takes a few minutes and doesn't interfere with delivery or skin-to-skin time.
3. The sample is couriered to the lab
A medical courier picks up the kit and delivers it to the bank's processing facility, usually within 24–48 hours.
4. Processing isolates the stem cells
Technicians separate the stem-cell-rich fraction, run viability and contamination tests, and prepare it for cryogenic storage.
5. Long-term storage in liquid nitrogen
Samples are stored at roughly −196 °C in vapor-phase liquid nitrogen. At those temperatures, biological activity essentially stops and samples remain viable for decades.