Abstract
Umbilical cord blood (UCB) is considered as a valuable potential source of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. A process of collecting and storing UCB in the immediate period after the birth is called UCB banking. The study was conducted in order to determine women’s knowledge, awareness, preferences and attitude towards UCB banking in Poland, considering the sociodemographic and obstetric factors. A cross-sectional, self-administered, online questionnaire-based study including mostly multiple choice questions concerning attitude and awareness regarding UCB banking was conducted entirely online among Facebook female users in Poland. A total of 1077 participants correctly completed the survey. Most participants (n = 911, 84.6%) were aware of the possibility of UCB banking. Social media were considered as the main source of information (47.5%). However, the participants mostly indicated the doctor as their preferred source of reliable information (86.8%). The majority of women (61.8%) assessed their level of knowledge of UCB banking as still insufficient. Among the participants who supported UCB banking (70%), the following reasons were considered as the most vital: potential possibility of helping their child (93.9%) and helping other relatives (64.4%). More than half of the respondents (66.9%), who have not stored and are not willing to store their children’s UCB, indicated the high cost of UCB banking as the main reason of this decision. The knowledge and awareness of UCB storage and banking possibilities amongst women in Poland could be improved. The professional medical personnel should be a source of reliable information.
Highlights
Umbilical cord blood (UCB) is considered as a valuable potential source of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (Lee et al 2010)
Women (n = 166, 15.4%), who had never heard of the UCB banking before, finished their questionnaire after the third section
Out of the 1077 women who participated in the survey, 84.6% (n = 911) admitted they had heard about umbilical cord blood banking
Summary
Umbilical cord blood (UCB) is considered as a valuable potential source of hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (Lee et al 2010). In 2007, there was the first Polish transplant of umbilical cord blood which was previously collected, processed and stored in a private bank (Borys-Wojcik et al 2019; PBKM 2007). Umbilical cord blood stem cells have been transplanted over 40.000 times worldwide including a few transplants in Poland (Ballen 2017; FamiCord Group 2020). Two umbilical cord blood banking options are available: private (commonly known as family) and public. The third and fourth parts gathered information about the source of their knowledge about the usage of stem cells, their attitude and awareness regarding UCB They were to ascertain their expectations about UCB banking as well as their view on private and public institutions. The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request
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