Your newborn’s stem cells are collected immediately after birth by your doctor or midwife using the CryoSave collection kit. The collection process is non-invasive, completely painless and only takes a few minutes.

The stem cells are then sealed in a  customized shipping container. You or your partner will need to call us within two hours of the birth of your baby – we’re available 365 days a year to arrange for the collection of the kit and its secure transport to our  processing laboratory in Pretoria.

Tests are performed on every cord blood sample to verify the quality of the stem cells that have been processed and stored. These include tests for total nuclear cell (TNC) count, CD34+/CD45 count and viability as well as bacterial and fungal cultures. Quality testing of cord tissue samples is performed by fluorescence microscopy. In addition, maternal blood is also tested for infectious markers.

Stem cells in the cord blood are isolated and concentrated by a process of differential centrifugation, using a semi-automated closed Sepax system.

Stem cells are prepared for cryogenic storage using using proprietary methods standardized to protect the cells during the controlled-rate cryopreservation process.

Cord blood and cord tissue stem cells are stored (cryopreserved) in the vapour phase of liquid nitrogen at temperatures colder than minus 180°C. International studies have shown that umbilical cord blood stem cells, stored under these conditions, can retain their viability for at least 20 years.