About 15,000 people have chosen to store their babies' cord blood with three private Australian operators, at a cost of up to $4000. Another 22,000 are said to have donated cord blood to public banks. Among them are 12,000 people who have donated blood to the Sydney Cord Blood Bank. Cord blood donated to the public bank is available for use by the wider population. Cord blood stored with a private bank is for individual use. Peter Littlewood, chief executive officer of Australian Stem Cell HealthCare, said private blood banking gave parents peace of mind because children could be treated with their own cord blood in a process called autologous treatment. ''Parents see storage as an insurance policy for the future. As science develops we would expect it would have more uses in the future. It is an area with huge potential.''

Cord-blood stem cells are said to have the ability to develop into different types of cells throughout the body. Scientists believe they can be used to treat a variety of diseases. Duke University in the US has announced a new trial using stem cell infusions to treat cerebral palsy, congenital heart disease and forms of cancer. Graeme Moore, quality and regulatory affairs manager at the private bank Cryosite, said: ''We never make any claims, but people are aware of the possibilities for cord blood in regenerative medicine.'' Pamela Clark, the director of the Sydney Cord Blood Bank, said: ''In published papers and other reviews it has been estimated that the likelihood of using cord blood collected for private use ranges from 1 in 2500 to over 1 in 200,000, although future advances in the field could potentially lead to increased alternate treatments using autologous stored cord blood.'' Mr Moore said stem cell research in Australia had been slowed down by ethical debate.

''It's right to have that debate but the difference is we're not using embryonic stem cells. These cells are … from cords which would otherwise be thrown away as medical waste.'' Families who want to use stem cell treatments for conditions such as cerebral palsy, brain injury or diabetes often have to travel overseas to seek medical expertise, leading to so-called stem cell tourism. 'I wanted to give something back' Phoebe Neylon, a mother of four, chose to donate cord blood to the public Sydney Cord Blood Bank after seeing patients at the Sydney Children's Hospital in Randwick. ''Your heart just goes out to them. It really is heartbreaking, and I think that if you can help make them better you should.''

Mrs Neylon's two eldest children, Faith, 8, and Alexander, 9, were born in France, where cord blood collection was not offered. When she had Lillian, now 6, in Sydney, she donated the cord blood. She did the same with Harry, born in March. ''I've had four perfect pregnancies, four perfect labours and four healthy children,'' she said. ''I wanted to give something back.'' She said the collection process was simple. ''I thought it's not a huge imposition on me but it could make a huge difference to someone else. ''I can't understand why anyone wouldn't do it.''