StemCyte opens new cord blood donation sites

StemCyte has recently opened another two hospital sites for accepting cord blood donations from southern California. These hospitals are located in in Fontana and Ontario.

StemCyte is a global cord blood therapeutics company with laboratoires located in the US, India, and Taiwan. The StemCyte laboratory in California provides both public donation and family storage for US parents. StemCyte participates in the US registry of cord blood donations operated by Be The Match®. StemCyte’s California laboratory is one of a handful around the world that is accredited by both AABB and FACT. World-wide, StemCyte has provided over 2200 cord blood units to over 350 transplant centers, to treat over 58 conditions in 38 countries.

StemCyte is expanding their cord blood donation program at a time when most public banks are closing collection centers. Whereas three years ago the Parent’s Guide to Cord Blood Foundation listed nearly 200 USA donation hospitals, there are now less than 160.

The new donation centers represent a collaboration between StemCyte and California’s Umbilical Cord Blood Collection Program (UCBCP). The UCBCP is a California statewide program administered by UC Davis Health. The goal of UCBCP is to increase the number of high quality, publicly donated cord blood units, and make them available to anyone for lifesaving transplantations.

The UCBCP team trains collection specialists and certifies donation sites at hospitals around the state. This unique state-wide program is funded by an additional $2 fee on birth certificate copies, thanks to state Assembly Bill 52 passed in 2010. California is a good region for collecting cord blood donations because of its ethnic diversity; in the state capital of Sacramento, 20% of all births are registered as "mixed race".

As a California-based hybrid public and private cord blood bank with over 20 years of experience and a strong research focus, StemCyte stands ready as the optimal fit for this collaboration. "It is a huge honor and privilege for StemCyte to be partnered with UC Davis for California's Umbilical Cord Blood Collection Program (UCBCP)…. We are determined to work closely with physicians and staff through continuing support for this program to achieve its goals. StemCyte is one of the most accredited cord blood banks in the world and is the leading hybrid bank in Southern California, which provides services for public banking as well as private banking," said Dr. Jonas Wang, CEO of StemCyte, Inc.

To learn more, visit www.StemCyte.com, email publicbank@stemcyte.com, or phone 626.646.2500.