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Saint Barnabas Medical Center Announces the First Hospital-Affiliated Program in the Nation Banking Placenta-Derived and Cord Blood Stem Cells LIVINGSTON, N.J. -- Saint Barnabas Medical Center announced that its Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology has formed a relationship with LifebankUSA, a New Jersey-based stem cell banking service, to establish the Saint Barnabas Medical Center-LifebankUSA Placenta·Cord Banking Program. The new program, which will educate expectant parents regarding stem cell banking services when giving birth at the Medical Center, is the first hospital-affiliated program in the nation to provide for banking of placenta-derived stem cells as well as cord blood stem cells. “We are pleased to have partnered with LifebankUSA to offer this service for our families who are considering storing their newborn’s stem cells,” says Richard Miller, MD, Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Saint Barnabas Medical Center. “This initiative is part of our ongoing effort to foster long-term health and provide families with the best and latest in healthcare services.” “Our new program with Saint Barnabas will provide families with the ability to bank the most stem cells possible,” said Robert Hariri, MD, PhD, CEO of LifebankUSA. “Parents can significantly increase the number of stem cells collected when they choose to bank both cord blood and placental stem cells. As a locally-based company, LifebankUSA is especially pleased to have established a formal relationship with an acclaimed New Jersey medical center.” LifebankUSA, based in Cedar Knolls, NJ and a division of Summit-based Celgene Corporation., is an AABB-accredited, ISO-certified stem cell banking service. Its stem cell processing and storage facilities are located less than 20 minutes away from Saint Barnabas Medical Center. Why Save Your Baby's Cord Blood and Placental Stem Cells? Currently, stem cells can be used in treating approximately 80 different diseases, including various cancers, and to date more 7,000 patients have received transplants of newborn stem cells collected following childbirth. Families have one opportunity to collect and preserve their baby’s umbilical cord blood and placental stem cells. If the cord blood and placenta are not collected at birth and preserved, these stem cells are lost forever. Stem cells are the building blocks of tissue, blood, and the immune system. Unlike other cells in the body, stem cells have the ability for self-renewal and are capable of forming many specialized cell types such as red blood cells or nerve cells. Stem cells derived from both cord blood and placenta provides a greater potential of having stem cells available for medical treatments in the future. Privately banked stem cells provide babies with a perfect match for future stem cell transplants and confer a greater likelihood for a suitable match for family members than from a public registry. Placenta•Cord banking, pioneered by LifebankUSA, is simple and noninvasive. Delivery-room procedures only take about 5 minutes and pose absolutely no risk to either the mother or her newborn. If you are an expectant family, following are some tips if you are considering cord blood and placental stem cell banking: · Parents should give particular consideration to cord blood and placental stem cell storage if an older sibling has cancer leukemia, lymphoma, other cancers, sickle cell disease, thalassemia or other transplant-treatable diseases. · Speak with your obstetrician prior to delivery to discuss your interest in the procedure for umbilical cord blood and placental stem cell preservation. · Parents can visit www.LifebankUSA.com for more information. About Saint Barnabas Medical Center The Medical Center has the largest obstetrical service in the state, with more than 7,200 babies born at the hospital each year. The four subspecialty Divisions within the Department, with exceptionally qualified staff, provide outstanding medical care for women with gynecologic cancers; those with high-risk or complicated pregnancies; women with conditions that effect the menstrual cycle, fertility and hormonal issues; and women with conditions including pelvic organ prolapse, urinary stress and/or urge incontinence, overactive bladder, interstitial cystitis and other urogynecologic problems. A study of quality at the nation’s 4,971 hospitals named Saint Barnabas Medical Center as one of the top 5 percent in the nation and a recipient of the 2007 Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence™. Saint Barnabas Medical Center was the only hospital in New Jersey to be a dual recipient of the HealthGrades 2006/2007 Maternity Care Excellence AwardTM and the HealthGrades 2006/2007 Women’s Health Excellence AwardTM. Contact The Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Saint Barnabas by calling (973) 322-5282. About LifebankUSA LifebankUSA, a Celgene Company, is a leading stem cell bank providing services for thousands of families worldwide since 1998. LifebankUSA is the first stem cell bank in the world to provide its clients with storage of placental-derived stem cells. It is the only private bank with multiple fully equipped facilities that are ISO certified and accredited by the AABB (formerly known as the American Association of Blood Banks), and its comprehensive research operations are among the largest in the stem cell banking industry. For more information visit, please visit www.LifebankUSA.com. About Celgene Celgene Corporation, headquartered in Summit, New Jersey, is an integrated global pharmaceutical company engaged primarily in the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative therapies for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases through gene and protein regulation. For more information, please visit the Company’s Website at www.celgene.com. March 8, 2007 CONTACT: PUBLIC RELATIONS (973) 322-9901 [ top ] |
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