Company news

Cryo-Save Group N.V. (Euronext: CRYO, “Cryo-Save”), Europe’s leading stem cell bank, today announced that it intends to launch Cryo-Lip™ in the United States in 2011, after the successful introduction of the service in Europe during 2010. Cryo-Save is one of the first in the world that offers cryostorage of adult mesenchymal stem cells from fatty tissue for use by patients undergoing a surgical procedure. Cryo-Save is currently looking for partners to roll out this service in the United States.

Cryo-Lip™ has been launched in Spain and Italy in June 2010 and has since also been introduced in Greece, Bulgaria, Hungary and Cyprus. It will also be made available in the Netherlands this month. The Cryo-Lip™ service has been expanded thanks to new clinical developments, which means it will be available to a much larger segment of patients.

Dr Henk Snyman, Managing Director for Cryo-Lip™ explained: “Apart from the cryostorage of adult stem cells for later medical use, we can now also release back to plastic surgeons the adipose tissue itself (Processed LipoAspirate or PLA Liquid) for clinical applications such as lipofilling. In addition, we have just successfully completed a pilot project, validating the collection of adult mesenchymal stem cells from patients undergoing surgical procedures such as elective caesarian sections, general surgical or orthopedic operations.”.

Cryo-Save has developed a novel cryopreservation process specifically for adipose tissue, which has been submitted as an international patent. The Company is an accredited tissue bank for the cryopreservation and storage of fatty tissue. Fat is the richest source of adult mesenchymal stem cells (called ASCs or adipose-derived stem cells when harvested from fat) in the human body and readily accessible (Gimble 2007). Cryo-Lip™ requires less than 50 ml of tissue, which can easily be obtained. ASCs are regarded as the building blocks of regenerative medicine (Yoshimura 2008), a concept supported by recent publications with significantly positive results in patients with acute and chronic cardiac ischemia.

The interest from the plastic surgery community has been very high with positive acceptance of this groundbreaking opportunity for their patients. To date the company has registered and trained close to 100 plastic and reconstructive surgeons as Cryo-Lip™ Providers who are now able to offer the service to their patients.

Dr. Jorge Planas, an internationally renowned Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon in Barcelona and the Chairman of the Cryo-Lip Advisory Panel, commented: “We are receiving positive feedback from both physicians and patients. I am convinced that the cryopreservation of adipose tissue and adult stem cells creates a major benefit for many and will be widely used”.

Arnoud van Tulder, the Cryo-Save CEO, added: “Being the first in this new market segment represents an important strategic advantage for our company. We are aiming for global leadership and are actively investigating our options with regard to the introduction in the USA, the biggest commercial market in the world”.

Websites:

www.cryo-lip.com

www.cryo-save.com

Enquiries:

Cryo-Lip™                                                                            + 41 555 330 122
Henk Snyman, MD Managing Director info@cryo-lip.com 

Cryo-Save Group                                                                 + 31 (0) 575 548 998
Arnoud van Tulder, Chief Executive Officer

Daniel Stewart & Company plc                                            + 44 (0) 20 7776 6550
Chris Theis

College Hill (UK)                                                                  + 44 (0) 20 7457 2020
Rozi Morris/Adrian Duffield

SPJ Financiële Communicatie Amstelveen (Netherlands)  +31 (0)20-6478181
Kees Jongsma/Leon Melens


Free footage is available on www.videobankonline.com.

Cryo-Save Group N.V. (Euronext: CRYO, “Cryo-Save”), Europe’s leading stem cell bank, today announces that another sample has been released. A six year old boy from Portugal went to Duke University (USA) to participate in a FDA approved clinical trial for cerebral palsy (CP). Cerebral palsy is a form of brain injury which causes physical disability and has no standard cure at the moment.

Pioneering medical doctors at Duke’s University are treating cerebral palsy patients who have their own cord blood stored. In a simple and safe procedure, the stem cells from umbilical cord blood that were stored at birth are transfused back into the children, in what is called an autologous stem cell transfusion (using one’s own stem cells).

 
Many parents have noticed significant improvements in their children who suffer from cerebral palsy after receiving their own cord blood transfusion and this and other similar trials around the world hope to show conclusive evidence.

Arnoud van Tulder, Chief Executive officer, commented:
“Cryo-Save is proud to support such clinical trials by making available and releasing samples of the highest quality. The number of applications for autologous use of cord blood stem cells is increasing: having samples requested for release, accepted by hospitals and successfully transfused is a precise indicator of the quality of a bank from collecting, transport, processing and storing.”

Enquiries:

Cryo-Save Group                                                            +31 (0)575 548998
Arnoud van Tulder, Chief Executive Officer 

Daniel Stewart & Company plc                                       +44 (0) 20 7776 6550 
Chris Theis 

College Hill (UK)                                                             +44 (0) 20 7457 2020
Adrian Duffield/Rozi Morris

SPJ Financiële Communicatie Amstelveen (NL)            +31 (0)20 647 8181
Kees Jongsma/Léon Melens

Free footage is available on www.videobankonline.com.

Cryo-Save celebrates 10 years of stem cell storage with increasing usage of umbilical cord stem cells

Cryo-Save Group N.V. (“Cryo-Save”) is Europe’s leading stem cell bank, and today announces the 10 year anniversary of storing the first samples of stem cells taken from umbilical cord blood in its laboratories.

Since the first samples were stored, Cryo-Save has grown into one of the world leaders in private stem cell storage, with a record number of over 170,000 customers. The Group now operates in 40 countries on three continents, with five state-of-the-art laboratories processing and storing samples. No other stem cell bank matches Cryo-Save’s geographic spread.

Umbilical cord blood stem cells have been used for over 20 years and have proven their safety and efficacy in many treatments. Currently cord blood stem cells are more used for stem cell transplantations than bone marrow. Currently in the US, cord blood stem cells are the most frequently used source of stem cells for transplantation in the paediatric setting and adult transplantations using cord blood stem cells are on the rise. Furthermore, following years of preclinical research, clinical studies are now being conducted using cord blood stem cells for cellular therapy, for e.g. diabetes type 1, cerebral palsy and spinal cord injuries, with encouraging results.

Over the last decade, cord blood stem cell transplantations using samples released from Cryo-Save’s banks have saved the lives of children for treatments for diseases such as leukaemia and cerebral palsy, and have enabled families to carry out genetic testing.

In 2008, a study* reported comprehensive estimates of the odds of a person in the U.S. receiving a hematopoietic stem cell transplant, including cord blood stem cells, bone marrow stem cells and peripheral blood stem cells. The study estimated the odds of receiving one’s own cells for transplant at approximately 1 in 400.
*Nietfeld JJ. Lifetime probabilities of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in the U.S. Biol. Blood Marrow Transplant. 2008, 14:316-322

During the last ten years, Cryo-Save has worked relentlessly to increase the acceptance and awareness of the value of stem cell storage around the world. The Group continues its programme of educating and informing the public and healthcare professionals, to help ensure all expectant parents are aware of the options available to them and opportunity to store their child’s stem cells.

Cryo-Save continues to participate in adult stem cell research projects funded by the European Commission and is the only cord blood bank in Europe to take part in these advanced projects. The Group is also active in clinical studies for stem cell therapies and is pleased to be able to contribute to the medical community, working to improve quality of life.

Arnoud van Tulder, Chief Executive officer, commented:
“Since our start in 2000, quality, reliability and service to our clients have been important pillars on which we have and continue to build our company. As leading stem cell bank in Europe we have extended our services and can offer today the storage of stem cells from umbilical cord and adult fat tissue in addition to stem cells from umbilical cord blood.

“The significance of stem cell storage continues to grow as medical advances widen the potential for its use. Cryo-Save considers therefore supporting the R&D in this area as another important corporate activity. We will continue collaborating with centers of excellence that contribute to saving the lives of children and adults alike by developing additional stem cell treatments.”

Enquiries:

Cryo-Save Group                                                            +31 (0)575 548998
Arnoud van Tulder, Chief Executive Officer 

SPJ Financiële Communicatie Amstelveen (NL)            +31 (0)20 647 8181
Kees Jongsma/Léon Melens

Daniel Stewart & Company plc                                       +44 (0) 20 7776 6550 
Chris Theis 

College Hill (UK)                                                             +44 (0) 20 7457 2020
Adrian Duffield/Rozi Morris

Free footage is available on www.videobankonline.com.

Europe’s Leading Stem Cell Bank launches innovative service for liposuction market

Cryo-Save today announced the European introduction of Cryo-Lip, a new product that allows the collection, processing and storage of a rich mixture of adult stem cells from liposuction aspirate (fatty tissue that is normally discarded). A novel cryopreservation process for fatty tissue has been developed and submitted as an international patent by Cryo-Save.

Adult Stem Cells
The primary roles of adult stem cells are to maintain and repair the tissue in which they are found. There are two main types: Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSCs), forming all blood cells and Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs), able to differentiate into multiple cell types such as bone, fat, muscle and cartilage.

Fat or adipose tissue is an ideal source of adult stem cells:

• It is very rich in MSCs, for example a 500 times higher concentration than in bone marrow
• It is readily available, the 50ml needed for Cryo-Lip can easily be obtained from a liposuction
• It is autologous, adult tissue, and hence no ethical or immunological issues
• It is normally discarded anyway

Clinical Applications
The use of Adipose-derived Stem Cells (ASCs) promises much as testified by the exponential increase in both peer-reviewed medical publications and ongoing clinical trials.

 
Professor Marco Gasparotti, an eminent Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon from Rome and the pioneer of the superficial liposculpture technique , commented: “I am pleased to join the Cryo-Lip Advisory Panel as I believe that adipose-derived stem cells will play an important role in the future of both regenerative medicine and cosmetic surgery. The cryopreservation of such cells from liposuction waste material will further enhance the basis for future therapeutic advances”.

 
The Cryo-Lip service will initially only be available in Europe and will be offered by qualified and trained physicians. “We will focus our communications on plastic surgeons who are experienced in liposuction procedures and have set up a partnership program for physicians under the auspices of our Advisory Panel”, said Dr Henk Snyman, General Manager for Cryo-Lip.

Arnoud van Tulder, the Cryo-Save CEO, added: “The addition of the Cryo-Lip service is an important advance for our company and allows us to leverage our market leadership position in the cryopreservation of adult stem cells”.

For further information, please contact:
Henk Snyman, MD General Manager
Tel.: +41 555 330 122

E-mail info@cryo-lip.com 
Websites : www.cryo-lip.com www.cryo-save.com

Successful completion of Cord Blood expansion project between Cryo-Save and Etablissement Francais Du Sang, France.

Cryo-Save, Europe's leading stem cell bank, is pleased to announce the successful completion of a collaborative project with EFS (the national agency for blood transfusion services, France).

Cord Blood stem cells can be cryopreserved for therapeutic applications. More than 20,000 people have already been treated for over 85 clinical conditions. It was previously thought that some cord blood units could not be stored due to low levels of stem cells, but the project with EFS, paid for by Cryo-Save, shows that some cord blood units can be efficiently expanded at clinical grade. This together with the report in Nature Medicine this week that expanded Cord Blood units have successfully been used to treat Leukaemia in the USA, gives evidence that a wider range of cord blood units will be available to regenerative medicine in the future.

The EFS Aquitaine-Limousin team led by Professor Boiron and Dr Ivanovic, have evaluated stored samples and their ability for the stem cells to be successfully expanded. Cryo-Save, which has the highest standards of cord blood banking in Europe and is operating several laboratories, including one being built in Lyon, France, welcomes these results for the contribution to transplant medicine. Cryo-Save collaborates internationally with leading cord blood experts, including contributing to several clinical trials not least in France and Germany.

Marc Waeterschoot, CEO of Cryo-Save said “Our commitment to transplant medicine has further been demonstrated by this collaborative study and is one of our many successful projects between public and private cord blood banks, including European Commission funded projects. We are saddened to hear the Director of the French Agence de la Biomedicine has labelled all private banks as providing dishonest arguments and lies. We are at the leading edge of technology and standards”.

For further details:
Cryo-Save Group
Marc Waeterschoot: 00 32 3 880 1540
marketing@cryo-save.com

About Cryo-Save

With more than 120,000 samples stored, Cryo-Save is the leading stem cell bank in Europe and one of the fastest growing in the world. Cryo-Save is now represented in 39 countries on three continents and has state-of-the-art processing facilities in Belgium, Germany, Dubai, India and France (under construction).

Cryo-Save sets the highest quality standards in stem cell storage, as it aims to make an important contribution to conquer possible life-threatening diseases in the future. As a service to the public, Cryo-Save offers a Cost-free Family Donation Program, free of charge, to families wishing to store their newborn's umbilical cord blood stem cells for a family member diagnosed with a life-threatening disease treatable by stem cells. The company is committed to further improve stem cell cryopreservation techniques, by participating in European Commission funded projects, in Universities and Hospitals.

Dubai-UAE: 23 November, 2009 – Cryo-Save Arabia, the region's leading provider of umbilical cord blood stem cell processing and storage company, today announced it has become the region's first Cord Blood Stem Cell Bank to be accredited by the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB).

Based at Dubai Biotechnology and Research Park (DuBiotech), a member of TECOM Investments, Cryo-Save Arabia has received an official notification from AABB for satisfactorily meeting all requirements during an intensive on-site inspection conducted by specially trained AABB assessors.

The AABB inspection establishes that the level of medical, technical and administrative performance within the Cryo-Save Arabia facility meets the standards set by AABB. Its on-site audits extend to areas of cell processing, cryo-preservation records, document control, inspection and testing, training of lab technicians, sample identification and traceability, and verification of cord blood units when released from storage.

Sarah Al-Hajali, Executive Manager, Cryo-Save Arabia, said:
Cryo-Save Arabia has now been officially recognized for the quality of service provided to our customers. Achieving such a prestigious accreditation is an extremely important validation of our processing methods. It is an important minimum baseline for expectant parents comparing cord blood banks.

The AABB is recognized around the world for its commitment to outstanding quality. Cryo-Save Arabia is proud to be recognized for our high service standards and we pledge to continue offering excellent service to all customers.
Established in 1947, the AABB demands the highest quality standards from accredited facilities and performs on-site audits every two years. The AABB Accreditation Programme strives to improve the quality and safety of collecting, processing, testing, distributing and administering blood and blood products.

AABB accreditation is the recognition of choice for blood banking, transfusion medicine, blood management and cellular therapies as it demonstrates an organization's commitment to advanced learning, continuous improvement and innovation by striving to sustain the highest possible level of patient and donor care.

AABB-accredited organizations are recognized by their peers as leaders in their field and as pivotal voices in the dialogue through which consensus-based, voluntary standards are developed and implemented.

 
Notes to Editors

About Cryo-Save Arabia
Cryo-Save Arabia specializes in the collection, isolation and storage of stem cells from umbilical cord blood. It owns and operates the region’s largest and state-of-the-art private laboratory and cryogenic preservation facility that is dedicated and designed exclusively for the collection, high-quality processing and long-term storage of stem cells found in the umbilical cord blood of newborns.

Cryo-Save Arabia’s facility set-up fully mirrors that of Belgium-based Cryo-Save, the largest, most experienced and trusted newborn cord blood cell bank in Europe. Other than the UAE, Cryo-Save is present in 39 countries and has cord blood stem cell banking facilities in Belgium,Germany, India and France. To-date, over 110,000 parents have chosen Cryo-Save for the storage of their newborns’ cord blood stem cells.

About AABB
Established in 1947, the American Association of Blood Banks is an international association of blood banks, including hospital and community blood centers, transfusion and transplantation services and individuals involved in activities related to transfusion and transplantation medicine. The AABB supports high standards of medical, technical and administrative performance, scientific investigation, clinical application and education. Approximately 2,000 institutions (community and hospital blood banks, hospital transfusion services and laboratories) and 8,000 individuals are members of the AABB, including physicians, scientists, administrators, medical technologists, blood donor recruiters and public relations personnel. Members are located in all 50 states and 80 foreign countries.

About DuBiotech
Established in February 2005, the Dubai Biotechnology and Research Park (DuBiotech) is a leading life sciences cluster in the Middle East, and a member of TECOM Investments. The free zone currently hosts 65 major pharmaceutical firms including Pfizer, Genzyme, Merck-Serono and Amgen, as well as companies specialized in biomedical and scientific devices, biotechnology, cosmesis, and enzymes.

DuBiotech offers flexible laboratory space as one of the key components of the sprawling business park. In addition to hosting a range of assets varying from offices to warehouses and land for manufacturing, the 22 million sq. ft. biotechnology cluster enjoys a strategic location with world-class infrastructure.

A number of free zone-associated incentives such as full ownership, tax-free profit repatriation and business friendly environment that DuBiotech offers makes the cluster an ideal destination for life sciences companies seeking to address the fast growing regional markets.

 
For further information, please call:
Zeba Ahmad
JiWin
Tel: +9714 361 3590 (direct)
+9714 361 3333 (switchboard)
Fax: +9714 388 8001
e-mail: Zeba.Ahmad@jiwin.ae

CORD BLOOD EUROPE CALLS FOR BETTER EDUCATION AMONG PARENTS-TO-BE

Brussels (Belgium) – 1 October 2009 - Cord Blood Europe calls for better education and understanding about the value of cord blood stem cells among parents-to-be. “The long-term storage of stem cells at birth is still far below 5% of the total annual births in many European countries ”, says Dr. Eberhard Lampeter, President of Cord Blood Europe. “Although there are 5.4 million births each year in Europe, less than 400,000 stem cell samples have been stored to date by both private family and public donation banks.” In the United States an increasing number of federal states have adopted legislation that requires health care providers to deliver mandatory information about the advantages of storing and donating stem cells from umbilical cord blood.

Cord blood contains very young and healthy stem cells, which have the potential to cure previously untreatable diseases. More than 100 diseases like cancer, leukemia, brain disease and diabetes type 1 are treated with adult stem cells from cord blood or bone marrow. It has been determined that there is a 1:200 life time probability for need of a stem cell-based treatment. 20.000 people have already been treated with umbilical stem cells and, with over 3,000 clinical trials ongoing, the number of treatments will further increase.

Cord Blood Europe’s mission is to promote awareness about the advantages of adult stem cells and to increase their storage at birth in Europe, so that thousands of potent umbilical stem cell samples are stored and not considered useless any longer. “As the number of clinical trials with adult stem cells is expanding, there is a need for policymakers and healthcare professionals across Europe to focus more and put impetus on raising awareness about the advantages of stem cells”, Lampeter highlights. “There is no second chance to collect cord blood. Hence, impartial and balanced education of the parents-to-be about the potential of their children’s cord blood is required.”

ABOUT CORD BLOOD EUROPE:

Cord Blood Europe A.I.S.B.L. (not-for-profit) is the European Association of Family Cord Blood Banks and has its representation offices in Brussels. Seven leading stem cell storage companies from various European countries– CrioEstaminal (Portugal), Cryo-Save (Netherlands), Future Health Technology (United Kingdom), Polski Bank Komorek Macierzystych (Poland), Stemcare (Denmark), Swiss Stem Cell Bank (Switzerland) and VITA34 (Germany) – have established this new trade association in January 2009.

Cord Blood Europe provides a platform of co-operation and exchange of best practices in the field of stem cell storage and regenerative medicines. The association members encourage and contribute to a harmonized regulatory framework of European policies on cells and tissues, and comply with the highest levels of safety and quality in their laboratories. The members of Cord Blood Europe are active in all EU and EFTA countries.

For more information, visit www.cordbloodeurope.org

Today, Cryo-Save opened a new high-tech laboratory in the research park Waterfront in Niel near Antwerp. Cryo-Save specializes in research into adult stem cells and their long-term storage for medical therapeutic use. The new laboratory facility will be capable of storing up to 1 million samples and is the largest stem cell bank in Europe. The investment amounts to almost €6 million.

25,000 samples per year

Cryo-Save specializes in the long-term storage of ‘adult’ stem cells harvested from umbilical cord blood at birth. The company annually processes more than 25,000 new samples collected according to very strict procedures. With more than 108,000 samples stored in Belgium, Cryo-Save is the European market leader and one of the top five in the world.

In the last two years the company has seen a huge increase in the number of samples received, mainly from southern European countries. “The establishment of a stem cell bank of this size and format is necessary because science is rapidly evolving. There are more and more diseases that are in clinical research for medical treatment with stem cells. This means that in the future ever more storage capacity will be needed,” says Marc Waeterschoot, founder and CEO. “Not only is the number of transplants increasing, but we are also constantly developing new methods for collecting stem cells, which means we expect the demand for storage facilities will also continue to increase.”

The stem cells are used by medical specialists to treat an ever-growing range of diseases. The Cryo-Save approach is unique in so far that the stem cells are stored under the name of the owner and thus remain available to the individual donor him/herself. In some countries, subject to the legislation, Cryo-Save will also collaborate with stem cell banks that use stem cells for patients other than donors.

Firmly established

Cryo-Save has invested almost €6 million in the construction of the new complex of 5000m² in Niel, which combines research laboratories, processing and offices. There are currently 30 highly trained employees working, but staff is expected to grow in the coming years. When it comes to stem cell research, Belgium has a strong international reputation, making it easier to find and attract people with specialized skills. In addition since the transposition of European guidelines in 2008, Belgian legislation offers sufficient legal certainty for Cryo-Save’s activities.

The location in the Waterfront science park associated with the University of Antwerp ensures rapid access from the rest of Europe via Brussels, Antwerp or Amsterdam. Opting for the Waterfront science park also opens up a unique opportunity for collaboration between the University and the company. Up-and-coming researchers get the chance to carry out research in the Cryo-Save laboratories.

OPEN LETTER TO ALL CUSTOMERS

Dear parents,

We are proud to be able to announce that we now have saved the stem cells from over 100,000 children. This significant landmark was reached a few days ago when the stem cells from the one hundred thousandth newborn child were safely stored in our facilities.

By reaching this important milestone, we have underlined our leading position in Europe, not only in terms of market share, but also in setting the highest standards in stem cell storage, and our commitment to research to further improve cryopreservation techniques.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you all very much. Your confidence and trust in our company and service has allowed us to become the leading stem cell bank in Europe.

Reaching this milestone is significant to us, but what inspires us most is helping families at need. At this very moment we have several sample release requests with the potential to save just as many lives. Lives of the children themselves either or lives of their family members.

Twenty years ago just one disease could be treated with umbilical cord stem cells; ten years ago only a handful. Today umbilical cord stem cells have been successfully used in the treatment of more than 70 diseases. Since the first successful umbilical cord blood stem cell transplantation in 1988, the total number has now grown to approximately 15,000. Currently about 3,000 transplants are performed each year. We are extremely happy to be able to contribute to the success of these lifesaving developments.

Yours sincerely,

The Cryo-Save Team

Cryo-Save are pleased to announce the new appointment of Professor McGuckin as Scientific Director to the group on 5th of January 2009

In his new role Professor McGuckin will be responsible for integrating new scientific technologies and keeping Cryo-Save’s storage services at the leading edge.

Professor McGuckin is a stem cell pioneer who developed the first "mini-liver" from human umbilical cord blood. His team has gone on to develop cord blood cells into many other human tissues, including nervous tissue and blood vessels amongst others. Recently his team has created artificial “pancreatic islets” - producers of insulin impaired in diabetic patients, which may have major implications for the development of stem cells for the treatment of diabetes.

In a recent interview, Professor McGuckin stated: "My vocation is to treat patients with umbilical cord blood. I believe that Cryo-Save, with their innovative and responsible programme for storing cord blood will help us achieve this goal faster and for more patients on an international scale. The speed that stem cell treatments are being developed now requires that we plan for the future healthcare needs of our nations."

Rob Koremans, CEO of Cryo-Save, said: "Gaining such a tremendous scientific know how will help sustain our financial security and contributions to patients. Prof. McGuckin’s recruitment is an auxiliary step in our efforts to put Cryo-Save at the forefront of the global stem cell market place."

Working in stem cells for over 20 years, Professor McGuckin is an opinion leader who has been called upon by governments and hospitals around the world, including the US Senate, the United Nations (Geneva) and the Parliaments of France, UK, Austria and Germany. Colin McGuckin is also President of the Novus Sanguis Consortium, which was launched in 2008 under the patronage of the President of the European Parliament. Novus Sanguis brings together leading adult stem cell researchers and clinicians from across the world to work on specific diseases of the human condition, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and organ regeneration.

About Cryo-Save

Porto / Brussels July 16 2007. – A child suffering from a severe T-cell (CD8+) immune deficiency syndrome has been treated successfully with umbilical cord blood stem cells in Portugal. The child’s congenital dificiency was clinically diagnosed in Coimbra. The transplantation treatment was performed at the Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, lead by director Dr. Pedro Pimentel at the Oncology Institute in Porto. Dr. Alzira Carvalhais is the head of the Immuno-Hemato Therapy Department.

The transplantation was performed mid February and the child could leave the hospital after 35 days of strict isolation by end of March 2007. The stem cells used for this transplantation were derived from the child’s brother. The stem cells were harvested from the umbilical cord blood using a collection kit provided by Cryo-Save. The umbilical cord blood sample was processed and stored at the private stem cell bank facilities of Cryo-Save in Belgium.

The Oncology Institute is certified from the European Group for Blood and Marrow Transplantation and has gained expertise and reputation. Upon the explicit medical recommendation by Dr. Pedro Pimentel, the use of stem cells from the child’s brother were preferred because of compatibility and availability. The stem cells were released by Cryo-Save and qualified for this treatment both from a qualitative and a quantitative perspective.

"We are very happy that this child has been treated successfully with his own brother’s stem cells. Luckily the child’s parents were convinced to store the stem cells in a private bank at our facilities", says Marc Waeterschoot, CEO Cryo-Save Group. "Treatments using umbilical cord blood stem cells are becoming more and more important for different diseases, such as leukaemia, lymphomas, immune deficiencies etc. However a case by case assessment remains always necessary. For treatments within a family, where the child’s own stem cells cannot be used in certain clinical indications, stem cells from brothers or sisters can be preferred. This case underlines the importance of storing a child’s stem cells at birth and illustrates once more the ideal cooperation between a public and private stem cell bank."

Cryo-Save stem cell storage services are provided to children and families all over Europe and in Portugal since 2003. Currently more than 11.000 samples from Portugal are stored in the state of the art laboratory facilities in Belgium. Cryo-Save is represented in Portugal through Cryo-Save Portugal and its distributor (Grupo Sampletest), who is providing additional information to doctors, obstetricians and parents about the relevance of storing stem cells derived from the umbilical cord blood.