Should racially and ethnically diverse parents donate to a public bank or store them at a family bank?
This is question that only the parents can decide. Parents must understand that at all public banks, most samples are donated to research due to strict medical restrictions. If parents are OK with the fact that at least 7 out of every 10 samples are not stored, they are strongly encouraged to donate their cord blood to a public bank. The only way to ensure that those cells will be there in the future if they are needed is to pay the fees required to store it in a family bank. For many ethnically diverse patients, this will be their only chance of treatment. Parents who do not decide to store their sample in a family bank should be strongly encouraged to donate it to a public bank such as Victoria Angel Registry of Hope.
