Physicians and hospitals routinely offer new parents the opportunity to collect and store umbilical cord stem cells or future use by their newborn. Cord blood stem cells are capable of producing all blood cell types and are currently used in transplant medicine to regenerate healthy blood and immune systems. Cord blood banking preserves cells for the potential treatment of more than 80 known diseases and disorders. Banked cord blood cells are specific to the child, but may be donated to treat others.