Save a life by donating your placenta

[EPB]

There was a most moving item on today's One Show about stem cell donation, and how difficult it can be to find a match.

If you go to to the Anthony Nolan Trust website you will see how to register your interest.

It seems a wonderful thing to do, and it would be a lovely way of asking your baby's birth extra significant.

[sillywoman]

If you're at Kings they already offer this with the Kings cord blood programme.

[JS33]

I'm going to echo this. When I gave birth I didn't know very much about the potential of donated cord blood. I now have a friend with a very serious form of leukemia for which stem cell therapy, based on cord blood, was one of the possible treatment options. Her doctors advised her to take a different course, which hopefully will be successful and allow her to see her young son grow up, but I'll always regret not having done something so simple as help turn something that otherwise would be treated as medical waste into something that might save someone's life. (I am on the bone marrow registry and would encourage others to do that as well, although being a bone marrow donor requires much more of a person than donating cord blood or placenta, so it isn't to be done quite as lightly).

Of the local hospitals, it looks like Kings is the only one that's participating in the program, and I very much hope they're making information about the program easily available to any woman planning on giving birth there.

[Knomester]

JS33 - In my experience, King's are being very proactive in bringing this to peoples' attention at the moment.

[EPB]

Does Kings have some sort of arrangement with other local hospitals (Lewisham, for instance)?

It shouldn't be too difficult to courier the stem cell material, surely?

[GinaG3]

The leaflets are in nearly every letter you get from Kings right now, maternity wise. I'm pregnant with my second and really want to donate but also want to delay cord clamping at birth this time round. Can you do this and then still donate? I've got a feeling you cant. Has anyone done it?

[Knomester]

GinaG3 - I asked for delayed clamping at recent elcs and no one said it was incompatible with stem cell donation (although neither did anyone specifically confirm the two could go hand in hand). However, as it happened baby had a true knot in his cord so delayed clamping wasn't possible anyway (although donation was).

[T&G]

I did it and had forgotten about it, 2 days after my grandmother died I got a letter to say would I give permission to use my cells to help save someone who was a match ...I said yes it felt GREAT ! X

[Pickle]

I delayed clamping with my 3rd, and still donated.

[GinaG3]

I suppose I'll just have to talk to them about it for a definitive answer. I wanted to donate last time, but didn't get round to it so definitely want to this time. It says on the FAQ section of the AN website that you can delay clamping and still donate.

[Mazza6]

I donated too, in the haze after giving birth was thanked as it was a good amount. Was on such a high anyway but after felt so pleased for possible helping someone when I had been given such a wonderful gift.

[sillywoman]

Kings and The Royal Free are the only London hospitals working with the Anthony Nolan Trust at the moment (it's not cos the others didn't want to it's because when the cord blood donation project was set up it had limited funds so could only be established in 7 hospitals). It's been such successful project that it would be wonderful to see it extended to other London units. You have to be giving birth in one of those hospitals to donate, so sadly if you're at Tommies or lewisham then you can't - though you can organise to do it yourself privately, but speak to your hospital as many units wil only work with particular companies. And it's expensive. You can't do it if you home birth (planed or unplanned). You can delay cord clamping and still donate, but the possibility of them being able to draw an adequate amount for donation is reduced - the benefit though is that's because those precious stem cells have gone into your baby - where nature meant them to be - to do whatever work nature meant them to do :D

Alternatively, if you're St Georges or UCH then you can donate via the NHS cord blood bank. http://www.nhsbt.nhs.uk/cordblood/ It's a lovely, altruistic thing to do as T&G's story illustrates.