Stem cells are the body’s “master cells”. They are the building blocks of all organs, tissues, blood, and the immune system. In many tissues they serve as an internal repair system, regenerating to replace lost or damaged cells for the life of the person. Stem cells are considered the building blocks our body uses everyday in tissue repair and normal cell replenishment.

Doctors were initially using stem cells derived from the bone marrow in patients who had received chemotherapy for cancer, to regenerate their blood and immune cells. In the late 1980s, they started using cord blood stem cells to treat diseases that had previously been treated with bone marrow transplantation.

Stem cells are today successfully being used to save lives. They also are being researched in an revolutionary new area of medicine called regenerative medicine, where scientists are studying the use of stem cells in experimental treatments for conditions like brain injury, diabetes and acquired hearing loss.

Throughout pregnancy, the umbilical cord is the lifeline between the mother and baby. The cord blood located in the placenta and umbilical cord contains a special type of stem cells. These cells are called hematopoietic stem cells, and they are the building blocks of our blood and the foundation of our immune system. Hematopoietic stem cells are blood-forming cells with the ability to self-renew. These unique cells have the potential to treat over 80 diseases and disorders; examples include, but are not limited to, leukemias, lymphomas, stem cell disorders, myelodysplastic syndromes, and more.

Cord tissue refers to the umbilical cord itself. It is a rich source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) which are different from those found in cord blood. MSCs can form bone, cartilage, and tissue cells and are predominantly found in the cord tissue. Cord blood predominantly contains hematopoietic stem cells.

Mesenchymal stem cells are used extensively in the exciting area of regenerative medicine research. They are also used in numerous clinical trials for wound care, spinal cord injuries, and joint and bone diseases. In certain studies, cord tissue stem cells have shown the ability to enhance cord blood treatments and transplants. MSCs are being referred to as “smart cells” that head straight to the site of the injured cells to stimulate new cell growth.

Storing stem cells for your newborn can change or even save a life. Cord blood stem cells have been used for over 30 years to treat more than 80 life-threatening diseases and disorders. Today stem cell therapies continue to evolve, bringing new hope to patients and their families. Below are just a few diseases and disorders that have been treated with cord blood stem cells:

Cancers

• Acute Leukemia
• Chronic Leukemia
• High-Risk Solid Tumors
• Hodgkin & Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
• Myelodysplastic Syndromes

Blood disorders

• Aplastic Anemia
• Beta Thalassemia
• Diamond-Blackfan Anemia
• Fanconi Anemia
• Sickle Cell Disease

Immune disorders

• Chronic Granulomatous Disease
• Hystiocytic Disorders
• Leukocyte Adhesion Deficiency
• Severe Combined Immunodeficiency Diseases
• Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome

Metabolic disorders

• Krabbe Disease
• Hurler Syndrome
• Metachromatic Leukodystrophy
• Sanfilippo Syndrome

Preserving newborn stem cells makes them available for your family. For inherited genetic conditions, the child may not be able to use his or her own stem cells. In these cases, a matched sibling’s stem cells would be the first choice. Only privately storing stem cells for your newborn, offers access to current regenerative medicine clinical trials in autism, diabetes, and brain injury.

Full siblings are the most likely to be compatible matches, with 75% chance of being at least a partial match. The child’s biological parents will always be a partial match. Extended family members like grand-parents, aunts, uncles, nieces and nephews are less likely to be immune compatible but still have the chance to be a partial match. If you were to go through the public banking system (donated cord blood) you would have a much smaller chance of finding a match. Public units also take more time to be located and released for use. Other family members could be a match. There is a higher chance of matching and a lower rejection rate for direct family members compared to unrelated donor stem cells.

Following the birth of your baby, the doctor or midwife will collect the samples and place them in your kit. Your kit will be shipped via Priority Overnight Service to our lab.