Progenics Cord Blood Cryobank is a Toronto-based facility whose mission is to cure and treat diseases with regenerative medicine using umbilical cord blood and cord tissue. Registered with the FDA and Health Canada, Progenics Cord Blood Cryobank is an AABB accredited company. With the goal of actively helping diverse communities with long-term cryopreservation in their state of the art laboratory, Progenics promises clients a safe and efficient customer experience.
Progenics Cord Blood aims to provide their clients with consistent and high quality service. Committed to processing cord blood and cord tissue units within the first 24 hours from collection, Progenics guarantees quality care with their work and clients.
Progenics’ medical director, Dr. Jeff Silverman, explains the meaning of cord blood and how it can treat illnesses. “Storing a newborn’s cord blood comes with many potential medical benefits. Cord blood is the blood that remains in the umbilical cord after a baby is delivered. After many years of research, it has been discovered that the previously discarded cord blood is a rich supply of the baby’s stem cells. These stem cells are primitive blood cells that develop into mature blood cells that can be used in the treatment of over 80 different diseases including leukemia, lymphoma and immunodeficiency diseases.”
Cord tissue can also be saved after delivery. Taken from a segment of the umbilical cord after a birth, cord tissue is a rich source of Mesenchymal Stem Cells. With the potential to differentiate into specialized cells such as bone and cartilage cells, cord tissue may be useful in treatment of many more medical conditions.
Dr. Silverman explains the importance of stem cell research and how they may benefit Canadians. “Stem cells extracted from cord blood are a 100% match for the baby, and are often a very good match for other siblings too. There are research studies being conducted to see if stem cells can be used one day to treat conditions such as COVID-19, autism, Crohn’s disease and diabetes.”
Progenics has helped over 21,000 families in Canada such as Adrian’s. Diagnosed with stage 4 Neuroblastoma in 2007 at the age of 10 months, Adrian received a transplant of his own cord blood stem cells. Another success story is Naomi, who received her sister’s cord blood cells to treat a rare and dangerous disease called hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis.
Storing your child’s cord blood and cord tissue can help treat illnesses that may occur in the future and can save lives. For more information, visit their site here.
Progenics Cord Blood Cryobank hopes to educate new families on the benefits of storing cord blood and tissue. “It is important for all expectant parents to be provided with information about cord blood and cord tissue banking to make an educated decision – one that is best for their family. Banking umbilical cord blood and tissue is a unique opportunity to have a child’s stem cells stored for the future, just like an insurance policy should your child need it” says Dr. Silverman.
