Ongoing stem cell research is spawning ever-increasing knowledge about how an organism develops from a single cell, and most importantly, how healthy cells can replace damaged cells. This latter field is often referred to as regenerative or reparative medicine and stem cells are currently being used to treat more than 80 acute and chronic diseases. Stem cells hold the potential of allowing researchers to grow and rejuvenate specific cells or tissues, which may ultimately be used to treat many more diseases.

Patients suffering from a malignant disease, such as leukemia, may undergo treatment with radiation or chemotherapy to destroy the cancer cells in their body. Radiation and chemotherapy treatments are often successful in destroying the cancer cells. However, they may also destroy the patient's healthy cells and bone marrow in the process.

Bone marrow is essential for the production of blood cells. If the bone marrow is destroyed, either from a malignant, non-malignant or genetic disorder, a stem cell transplant becomes necessary. Transplanted stem cells re-populate the bone marrow, which replenishes the body's supply of red blood cells.

Every year, a growing number of patients are diagnosed with diseases that can be treated by bone marrow transplantation. The problem with this option is the lack of availability for an exact Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) type match, which determines whether a patient has a suitable donor for stem cell transplant. Almost 50% of these patients are unable to find a donor using donor registries. It is even more difficult for African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans and other ethnic minorities or those with mixed ethnicities to locate donors.

Using a family member's stored stem cells offers patients in need a higher probability of finding an exact or acceptable match for their transplantation needs. The probability that the stem cells will be an exact HLA type blood match is as follows: 1/1 for the child the stem cells were collected from, 1/2 for the mother and father of the child, and 1/4 for a sibling of the child, whose stem cells are saved. In addition, stem cell transplantation from umbilical cord blood is less likely to cause "graft vs. host disease"?an immune attack on the recipient by cells from a donor?and other complications relating to the body rejecting foreign cells rather than a stem cell transplantation derived from a bone marrow donor.

There is a wide range of diseases that are treatable with cord blood, including stem cell disorders, acute and chronic forms of leukemia, myeloproliferative disorders and many more.  It's important to note that, in addition to the host of conditions that can now be treated, it's the potential of cord blood that holds the most excitement, as research continues to uncover new possibilities.

While the science is still fairly new, according to published research (Transplantation, 1998:65 (9): 1275-1278), blood-forming stem cells stored up to 15 years can be used in transplants. In fact, most research indicates that stem cells slow-rate frozen and stored in liquid nitrogen are viable for an indefinite period.

GVHD is an immune system attack by donor cells against the recipient and can sometimes occur following bone marrow transplants.

Umbilical cord blood stem cells are controversy-free and offer advantages over other types of stem cells. While your baby's own stem cells are a perfect match (100%), there is a good probability of a match for siblings, parents and or grandparents. While stem cells have been in the news more and more these days, few understand that there are different types of stem cells:

• Adult Stem Cells: Adult stem cells are found in bone marrow (the vehicle carrying these stem cells) and require invasive surgery to acquire. Also, finding a matching donor for a bone marrow transplant via a public bank can be difficult and sometimes impossible.

• Embryonic Stem Cells: Derived from an embryo (sperm meets the egg) are highly controversial and often in the news and at the heart of many moral and ethical debates.

• Umbilical Cord Blood Stem Cells: Umbilical cord blood offers a perfectly natural, controversy-free method of acquiring stem cells. (The Vatican approves of cord blood banking.) Cord blood stem cells offer many advantages over other stem cells. They are collected in a risk-free, 5-minute procedure at the time of birth that is painless for both mother and baby. Also, stem cells from cord blood are better than stem cells from bone marrow because they are less prone to "graft vs. host disease" (GVHD - an immune system attack by donor cells against the recipient) and other complications relating to the recipient body rejecting foreign cells. Most importantly, banked cord blood is available when you and your family need it most, allowing treatment to begin almost immediately, without time spent searching for a match. Plus, cord blood stem cells are a perfect match for the baby and can potentially be used to treat other family members.

Cord blood collection is simple and poses no risk to you or your baby. Immediately after your baby's delivery, the umbilical cord is clamped and the baby is separated from the cord. At this point, the needle attached to the collection bag is inserted into the vein in the umbilical cord. The placental blood/umbilical cord blood, drawn by gravity, then flows into the collection bag. The bag comes equipped with an anti-coagulant to keep the blood from clotting before it reaches our laboratory. Unlike traditional bone marrow collection, which usually requires general anesthesia and recovery, the process of collecting cord blood is non-invasive, painless and generally takes just three to five minutes to complete. NECBB will supply you with a cord blood collection kit prior to your baby's delivery date. You simply bring the kit to the hospital for the physician or midwife to collect the cord blood after you deliver. 

The kit, including everything needed to collect the cord blood and prepare it for shipping to our laboratory, is sent to you via Priority Mail. After you sign up with NECBB, you should receive the collection kit within two to three days.

We have always used blood bags for collecting umbilical cord blood, as they've been deemed the safest and most effective. Our Baxter collection bags are the same as those used by both The International and American Red Cross. Our average collection amount is 87ml per collection. In more than 7,000 samples surveyed, we experienced less than 1/10th of 1% contamination using the blood bags. We have surveyed nurses and midwives that use our services and the majority (89%) prefers the blood bag to the syringe for ease of use and quickness.

Once the attending physician or midwife has completed the umbilical blood collection, your sample is either picked up by our local courier or by our Worldwide Shipper to be sent to our laboratory in Boston. If your blood is coming from a destination outside our local area, our Worldwide Shipper ships via priority overnight to ensure that your blood arrives within 72 hours of birth. We have entrusted our Worldwide Shipper with our business, and with the shipping of precious cord blood since our company began offering these services. They are the world's leading shipper of diagnostic specimens.

It's best to make the decision as early in your pregnancy as possible. Having the collection kit early in the pregnancy can lower your anxiety; in case of early delivery, you'll be prepared with the kit. But we know that you're juggling a number of responsibilities before your baby comes, and we are here to help whenever you're ready. We support the potentially life-saving choice you're making to bank umbilical cord blood stem cells, and will do anything in our power to make the process as simple and efficient as possible.

We offer detailed instructions on collecting umbilical cord blood without a collection kit. These instructions can be faxed or e-mailed to your delivering doctor, if needed. The blood would have to be collected using the syringe method, with an addition of an anti-coagulant to the blood to keep it from clotting before it reaches our laboratory to be processed. This is not our preferred method of collection, but it will allow for the safe collection and shipping of your baby's blood to our laboratory to be processed and cryopreserved. The same methods of shipping apply once a suitable container is found to secure the syringe containing the umbilical cord blood.

Our Worldwide Shipper picks up your cord blood kit at the hospital as soon as the blood is collected. The kit is then shipped immediately to our laboratory for processing. 

NECBB's cord blood processing technique includes full cell separation, a method designed to optimize viability and usability of your baby's stem cells. To shield the stem cells from freezing damage, we use DMSO (Dimethyl Sulfoxide), a cryoprotectant, which is washed out of the stem cells in the thawing and preparation process prior to transplantation. Research has shown that this methodology is the most successful in terms of cell recovery and, ultimately, for transplant results.

Your baby's cord blood stem cells are stored in six cryovials. With multiple storage units, it is not necessary to thaw your entire specimen at once; thus, NECBB offers the potential for multiple usage. The cryovials are designed specifically for long-term cryogenic storage. We also set aside three smaller samples, which can be used for Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) type matching should the cells be needed for someone other than your baby. (HLA type matching determines whether a patient has a suitable donor for stem cell transplant.) One-hundred percent of the processed cells are preserved for your family and nothing is withheld for our use, a procedure unique to NECBB.

Our storage containers, called dewars, can maintain their internal temperatures within one degree for up to 30 days in case of a power failure. NECBB is further protected from power outages by a redundant, on-site electric generator system. Our facility also includes on-site storage of liquid nitrogen, eliminating the need for costly deliveries and the handling of smaller refill containers, all of which helps us control our expenses, which in turn keeps our service affordable.

All processing and storage is done at our state-of-the-art facility in Newton, Massachusetts, a Boston suburb located near the heart of its famous medical district. Boston is the home to such well-known institutions as Massachusetts General Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Children's Hospital, New England Medical Center, Tufts Medical School, Boston University Medical School, and Harvard Medical School. At no time in the process is your baby's cord blood sent out to any third party for processing or storage.