Where will my baby’s cord blood be stored?

It will be stored in our purpose-built long-term storage facility in Auckland, New Zealand. Our facility is licensed by Medsafe – the Ministry of Health regulatory arm under cGMP. CordBank is the only licensed cord blood collection, processing and storage facility in New Zealand.

Do the stem cells have to be kept at room temperature before being couriered to CordBank?

Yes, the cells should be kept at room temperature. Please do not refrigerate the kit, expose it to freezing temperatures or leave it a closed vehicle or car boot.

How will I know that my baby’s cord blood has arrived at CordBank?

We’ll contact you on the number you’ve provided on your registration form to let you know that we have received the cord blood at our facility.  Our state-of-the-art processing and cryopreservation facility is open seven days a week, weekends, and holidays.

What happens to the cord blood when it arrives at CordBank?

Your baby’s cord blood is tested for cell viability before being processed in our sterile laboratory and stored at -196º Celsius.

What happens to the cord blood after the 18 years of storage?

When your child turns 18, they are legally regarded as an adult and are able to sign contracts in their own name.

 

Are cord blood stem cells still viable after all this time in storage?

The New York State Health Department Guidelines for cord blood banking state that umbilical stem cells can be stored indefinitely under liquid nitrogen. The policy states, “There is no evidence at present that cells stored at -196°C in an undisturbed manner lose either in-vitro determined viability or biologic activity. Therefore, at the current time, no expiration date need be assigned to cord blood stored continuously under liquid nitrogen.”

Current data reflects that cord blood cells that have been stored for fifteen years have the same composition as they did at the time of storage. (3) All science involving cryogenic storage of cells also indicates that the cells should remain viable indefinitely.

3. Kobylka, P. Preservation of Immunological and Colony-Forming Capacities of Long-Term (15 years) Cryopreserved Cord Blood Stem Cells. Transplantation. 1998;65(9):1275-1278.

After the umbilical cord blood collection, parents phone our dedicated courier who will come to the hospital or birthing centre to collect the cord blood kit.