Family Bank: Maze Cord Blood Laboratories

About

Maze Cord Blood Laboratories pledges to do their absolute best to make the remarkable technology of Cord Blood affordable to as many families as possible. Thus, they provide the highest quality cord blood and cord tissue collection and banking services at one of the lowest prices among accredited cord blood banks. The best science at the best value; this is their way of contributing to your family's health and happiness. Now and in the years to come.

• Maze has a one-time fee that includes 20 years of storage and no annual or hidden fees ever. Interest-free payment plans, with no credit checks, are also available.
• Receive an exclusive discount just for visiting the Parent’s Guide to Cord Blood Foundation website! Visit MazeCordBlood.com/ParentsGuide to learn more.

Labs and Locations

Maze Cord Blood Laboratories is an FDA-approved and regulated cord blood storage facility. Maze partners with Community Blood Services laboratory, recently rebranded as Vitalant New Jersey. They are FDA registered, AABB accredited, American Society of Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics (ASHI) accredited, and a member of National Cord Blood Inventory (NCBI) of the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP). Since first opening over 70 years ago, Vitalant New Jersey has processed over 35,000 units of cord blood and provided cord blood stem cells for over 300 transplants.

Business Experience

Maze Cord Blood Laboratories was founded with a commitment to making cord blood banking affordable to as many parents as possible, without ever compromising service and quality.  Maze has been offering cord blood banking since 2004. The staff of Maze includes Founder, Michael A. Werner, MD, FACS and Medical Director, Marvin A. Lessig, DO, FCAP.  Maze stores cryopreserved cord blood in their own facility and has on-call service available 24 hours a day. The parent company, Maze Health, also operates an FDA-approved fertility lab that specializes in male fertility testing and sperm cryobanking. Additionally, Maze Health includes two medical practices: Maze Women's Sexual Health and Maze Men's Sexual & Reproductive Health. 

Collection Kit

Maze provides a state-of-the-art collection kit and all the supplies needed for cord blood and tissue collection:

• Maze uses the only FDA-approved cord blood collection bag, which is sterile inside and out, making it suitable for all deliveries including Cesarean Sections
• The collection bag contains citrate phosphate dextrose (CPD), an FDA approved anti-coagulant which is Heparin-free
• All documentation and Physician Instructions
• The kit also includes: Cord tissue collection cups, needles, iodine swabs for disinfecting, blood tubes for maternal testing, and labels for identifying the samples

Transportation container

• When the blood is collected, it is shipped via our medical courier service.
•  The medical courier is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (including holidays)
• After the cord blood is processed at the laboratory, it is then shipped in a vapor nitrogen tank to the storage facility at Maze Cord Blood Laboratories headquarters in New York.

Shipping Info

Parents will be given a number to call once the baby has been born and the cord blood has been collected.  Pick-up is available 24 hours a day / 7 days a week.  Maze arranges courier shipping with Quick International on behalf of parents. FedEx shipping is also available upon request at an additional charge.

Processing Method

Cord Blood: Advanced Suspension Method^TM

Your baby’s stem cells will be processed using our Advanced Suspension Method^TM technology, which yields more healthy stem cells and reduces red blood cell contamination. This superior method results in less toxic side effects and a decrease in the likelihood of certain complications in future use. 

Advanced Suspension Method^TM is a manual processing technique, which results in higher accuracy and less cell damage than automated processing. This method also allows the lab technologists to optimize the separation process by customizing the centrifugation speed depending on the volume of blood, resulting in a better yield.

Processing Steps

1. Cord blood is received by our lab within 12-24 hours of courier pick up.
2. The mother’s blood is thoroughly tested to ensure that there are no diseases present at the time of delivery that could have transferred to the baby’s cord blood.
3. Cord blood volume is reduced to about one quarter of the collected volume (approximately 25 ml or .85 ounces) by removing a large proportion of the red blood cells and plasma (liquid portion of the blood), which do not contain stem cells.
4. The cord blood components that remain after processing, but before freezing, are tested to check counts of CD34+, TNC, and 7-AAD cell viability.
5. A cryo-preservative (55% DMSO/Dextran 40 solution) is added to the cells.
6. The cord blood is placed into a 5-compartment storage bag, allowing you to thaw and use only the number of samples needed. This offers families the flexibility to use the cord blood on multiple occasions which is important as new treatments are developed.
7. The final unit is positioned in a metal cassette, coded with a unique identifying number, and placed in the vapor phase nitrogen tank for storage.

Cord Tissue: TissueQES^TM

Your baby’s cord tissue will be processed using our TissueQES^TM method, which provides a Quantitative Evaluation of stem cell Survival. The quality and quantity of your baby’s stem cells will be verified prior to long-term storage and you will receive a PhotoID verifying your baby’s stem cell growth.

Processing Phase

1. Cord tissue is received by our lab within 12-24 hours of courier pick up
2. The tissue is then cut into small pieces and a cryo-preservative is added
3. The mixture is placed into 5 separate vials, as well as a test vial, and frozen

Testing Phase

1. The test vial is thawed
2. Stem cells are placed into a sealed specimen dish
3. After 14 days, confluence (which represents the percentage of the specimen dish that is covered by cell colonies) is measured
4. A photograph of the specimen dish is taken under a microscope and a picture of the stem cell growth on the specimen plate is sent to you

In order to verify that your baby’s cells can survive the freezing and thawing process, it’s critical to measure post-thaw growth. It is important to note that the vast majority of banks use pre-thaw verification methods and therefore, aren’t offering, confirming or evaluating the viability and ability of the cells to grow after freezing and thawing.

Components Stored

Maze provides parents with a certificate describing test results, including collection volume and viability. The stored component of the cord blood is the buffy coat holding white cells and stem cells. Maze also stores maternal blood plus several testing portions.

Storage Method

1. The final storage is in the Maze cryogenic facility in Purchase, NY that has been FDA approved for over 18 years.
2. The cord blood stem cells are preserved in 5 equal and separate segments that are encased in overwrap and then placed in a metal canister.
3. MazeT5^TM Multi-Compartment Cord Tissue Storage: MazeT5^TM preserves the unique stem cells from your baby’s cord tissue into 5 equal and separate segments. This gives your family the most options for the future with the flexibility to use only a part of these valuable stem cells as needed.
4. All stem cells are stored in tanks holding vapor nitrogen at optimal long-term storage temperatures -190º C or colder.
5. Maze prefers vapor nitrogen over liquid nitrogen due to vapor’s ability to remain at a consistent temperature throughout the tank. Additionally, using vapor nitrogen protects the frozen cord blood from any infections or bacteria, which are able to “swim” through liquid nitrogen and infect other cord blood specimens.

Licensing & Accreditation

We maintain the highest possible cord blood standards in the industry.  Your cord blood is processed in an FDA registered, AABB & American Society of Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics (ASHI) accredited lab that is a member of National Cord Blood Inventory (NCBI) the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP). In addition Maze is licensed by all 4 US states that require cord blood bank licensing: CA, MD, NJ and NY.

Clinical Experience

So far Maze has only released one collection back to the baby for successful therapy (read more). Two other samples have recently been released and are awaiting trial results.

Insurance

Maze offers a $50,000 Quality Product Guarantee.

Community Service

1. Discounts are available for first time bankers, returning customers, multiple births, groups, and military personnel.
2. Maze has a gift registry.
3. Maze offers exceptional customer service; representatives are available to speak with parents directly at 914-992-0000, via LiveChat at www.MazeCordBlood.com or via email: info@MazeCordBlood.com.

Prices

Maze offers Cord Blood & Tissue Banking with various payment options for each. All payment plans are interest free with no credit checks required.

All plans include:

• Free storage for 20 years
• Maze Cord Blood & Tissue State-of-the-Art Collection Kit
• Medical Courier & Hospital Bedside Pick-up
• Advanced Suspension Method^TM Stem Cell Processing
• TissueQES^TM Method Stem Cell Processing and Testing
• MazeT5^TM Tissue Storage
• $50,000 Quality Guarantee

Cord Blood Banking: $2,990 (pay in full)

Payment Plans:

• 12 Months ($245.83/month)
• 24 Months ($125.42/month)
• 36 Months ($85.28/month)
• 48 Months ($65.21/month)
• OR pay $807 in year 1, followed by $59/month for 36 months starting in year 2.

Cord Blood & Tissue Banking: $4,240 (pay in full)

Payment Plans:

• 12 Months ($350.00/month)
• 24 Months ($177.50/month)
• 36 Months ($120.00/month)
• 48 Months ($91.25/month)
• OR pay $1120 in year 1, followed by $85/month for 36 months starting in year 2.

Additional Services

Prices with Additional Services

Maze also offers Cord Blood & Tissue Banking for 25 years.

Cord Blood: additional $425

Cord Blood and Tissue: additional $625