Chris and Rebecca Judd store daughter Billie’s cord blood and tissue for life

IF Chris Judd’s children suffer the same knee problems as their champion father, they may have a ready-made solution being kept on ice.

IF Chris Judd’s children suffer the same knee problems as their champion father, they may have a ready-made solution being kept on ice.

Rebecca Judd decided to store newborn daughter Billie Kate’s umbilical cord blood at her birth this month as health security in case the stem cells are ever needed for their family.

Tissue from the umbilical cord contains mesenchymal stem cells which are the building blocks of materials in the body including bone, cartilage and muscle.

While the Judds chose to have only cord blood stored after the birth of their first child Oscar, Ms Judd said keeping the extra tissue provided another layer of insurance for her family.

“It made a lot of sense to store both the cord tissue and blood with our new daughter,” she said.

“Of course, you obviously hope to never be in a position to have to use it. But ensuring we stored this important cord tissue and cord blood — when you have only one opportunity at birth — made sense.”

Australian company Cell Care, which stores umbilical and cord blood tissue, says an estimated 2 per cent of Australian families chose to privately store their child’s cord blood last year.