Family Bank: BancoVida - Puerto Rico

About

BancoVida is a locally owned and operated cord blood bank serving the people of Puerto Rico. The mission of BancoVida is to be the stem cell bank of choice, the most reliable, economical, and life-saving source for all families in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean basin. The vision of BancoVida is to facilitate treatment with cell therapies in Puerto Rico and encourage scientific research on our Island.

Labs and Locations

The BancoVida laboratory facilities are located in the Comprehensive Cancer Center of the University of Puerto Rico. By processing Stem Cells on our Island, the waiting time for the sample to arrive at the laboratory is reduced, thus speeding up its processing and maximizing the recovery and viability of stem cells. In addition, it would guarantee the immediate availability of the cells if necessary and even allow many of these treatments to be carried out in Puerto Rico.

Collection Kit

For your convenience, BancoVida will assign you a service representative, who will be personally assisting you throughout the process. He will be available to answer all your questions, assist you in filling out all the forms, and deliver your umbilical cord blood and tissue collection kit to you personally.

Shipping Info

Your sample will be collected at the hospital and transported to the BancoVida Laboratory within the first 24 hours after delivery. To make the treatment even more personalized, the same BancoVida representative that was assigned to you will collect your sample and take care of transferring it to the BancoVida laboratory, in the Comprehensive Cancer Center of the UPR, to begin the processing stage.

Processing Method

Once the sample arrives at the BancoVida laboratory, our professionals are in charge of processing it under the strictest biosafety standards, using the highest precision instruments in order to obtain the greatest amount of Stem Cells to be preserved. During this process, cultures of the sample will be carried out to confirm that it is free of viruses and bacteria.

Storage Method

In the cryopreservation or cryogenic storage process, Stem Cells are subjected to a computerized temperature drop in liquid nitrogen tanks at -320ºF for as long as it is necessary to preserve the sample. Cryopreservation allows these cells to maintain all their characteristics and viability without any alteration. After cryopreservation, parents will receive a detailed report of the collection results.