A cord blood registry, or cord blood bank, refers to a private service that has been set up to allow you to store (or bank) the umbilical cord blood of your newborn son or daughter. Cord blood refers to the blood that remains in the umbilical cord after delivery, and after it has been cut. The umbilical cord blood is rich in stem cells.

Stem cells are special cells of the body that have the potential to develop into any cell type in the body (for example body organs, muscle cells or red blood cells). Many believe that in the near future stem cells found in cord blood will allow organs to be regrown, and that stem cells may be useful for treating a variety of ailments such as leukemia and sickle cell anemia, as well as greatly improve the chances for bone marrow transplant matches.

Cord blood registries are new services that are designed to allow you to save the stem cells found in cord blood from your child at the time of the birth. There currently is some debate on whether cord blood banking is yet a practical solution for parents concerned about the health of their children, but many consider it a simple life insurance against unforeseen illness.

It should be noted that cord blood bank services are not cheap. Most will charge a fee for the initial cord blood collection, as well as an annual fee to store the blood. The current costs of cord blood storage are probably the largest argument against it. However, it should be noted that cord blood can only be banked at the time of a child's birth.