Cord Blood Registry Fact Sheet

Cord Blood Registry (CBR) is headquartered in San Bruno, California, and is a world leader in cord blood stem cell banking. The company is the largest, most experienced, and trusted newborn stem cell bank in the world.

CBR owns and operates its laboratory and storage facility, located in Tucson, Arizona. The location was the world’s first family cord blood bank. It is one of the largest and most modern laboratory facilities dedicated and designed exclusively for newborn stem cell processing and storage.

CBR's lab has been processing and storing cord blood since 1992. The laboratory is affiliated with the University of Arizona, Tucson, and was established by Dr. David T. Harris, professor of microbiology and immunology at the university. A recognized expert in stem cell processing and banking, Dr. Harris serves as CBR’s scientific director and stem cell bank director.

CBR provides for the collection, processing, and long term cryopreservation of newborn cells found in the umbilical cord blood of newborns, which is otherwise routinely discarded along with the placenta. With more experience than any other facility in the world, CBR has earned the reputation as the leader in cord blood banking.

CBR has provided extensive educational resources for obstetricians, midwives, and hospitals, and is the largest contracted service provider to many of the nation’s leading health insurance companies and HMOs.

CBR takes full responsibility to ensure that the processing, quality-control, and quality-assurance metrics are in accordance with FDA guidelines and AABB (formerly the American Association of Blood Banks).

Cord blood is the blood that remains in the umbilical cord and placenta following birth and after the cord is cut. The blood contains a rich source of special cells, called newborn stem cells, which carry the family’s genetic information.

Cord blood is collected immediately after birth using either a syringe or blood bag. The collection is painless, easy, and safe for the mother and child. Collection takes, on average, five minutes.

CBR has successfully processed and stored stem cells for more than 220,000 newborns.

CBR samples have proven viable when retrieved for use in 65 transplants, the ultimate validation of our processing methods. In all of the transplants, the newborn stem cells that were processed and preserved by CBR were chosen as the preferred source of stem cells for the patient's treatment.