February 2008

Science Today

Scientists Testing if Stem Cells Can Rebuild Heart

Doctors at the University of Miami Medical Center and Johns Hopkins University in Maryland are working on a study where they are injecting stem cells directly into the hearts of congestive heart failure patients to see if the stem cells will grow into healthy tissue and repair the damaged organ.  If this works, it could lead to treatment for the five million patients who currently need a heart transplant.  The biggest issue with treating congestive heart failure is the shortage of hearts available for transplant.  If a patient's own stem cells can be used to repair his heart, hundreds of patients who die waiting for a heart transplant will be treated and live.  The patients in this study will be followed for 18 months to see if they are building new heart tissue.

Federal Government Funds Stem Cell Treatments

The U.S. government has dedicated $85 million to fund the development of the Armed Forces Institute of Regenerative Medicine.  This funding will offer soldiers the chance to heal from limb injuries that might otherwise prevent them from returning to a normal life.  Doctors take the patient's own stem cells, mix them with protein and use it to fill in spaces within the bone.  This mixture grows into actual bone, replacing the missing bone in the limb.  The treatment has been successful experimentally and this investment may allow it to become standard treatment practice for badly damaged bones

Share Your Story

Many families wonder if they should save their infant's cord blood.  You can help them with this difficult decision.  If you would like to share your story of why you saved your baby's cord blood, please contact Anne Albanese at anne@mazelabs.com.

M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood Laboratories Launches New Web Site

We are pleased and exited to announce that after months of hard work, we have launched our new Web site at www.mazecordblood.com.  The new site is easier to navigate and hopefully, provides additional information on cord blood banking and M.A.Z.E.  If you get a chance, check out our new design.

M.A.Z.E. Creates Newsletter for Expectant Parents

We are pleased to announce that we have created a new newsletter for expectant parents.  Waiting for Baby provides interesting information and valuable tips for pregnancy and new parenthood.  If you are expecting a baby or know someone who is, you (or your friend) can sign up for the newsletter by sending an email titled subscribe to waiting@mazelabs.com.  You can check out our latest issue at http://www.mazecordblood.com/WaitingForBaby.htm.

Meet Our Staff

In every issue, we introduce you to another member of our staff.  We know that your infant's cord blood is very important and we want to provide you with names and information on some of the people who are responsible for caring for it.

Nancy Rossi

Business Manager

Nancy is responsible for ensuring that everything at M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood runs smoothly.  She manages the department that answers the phone when you call us, she manages the department responsible for sending out information on M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood Laboratories, and she manages the department responsible for the development, creation, and distribution of the collection kits.  It is Nancy who oversaw the development of the kit that was used to collect your baby's cord blood and Nancy who made sure the kit was sent to you in a timely fashion.  Nancy also makes sure that everything is running smoothly to notify new parents that their cord blood has arrived and has been processed, and she ensures that the final reports get sent out in a timely fashion.

Now that we are storing your infant's cord blood, Nancy is responsible for working with the organizations that help us guard your baby's cord blood.  She handles the alarm company and the video surveillance company. 

Nancy has extensive experience working in and managing office settings.  She worked for Weight Watchers for a number of years and prior to that, she worked in the NY State court system.  In her free time, Nancy really enjoys local birds.  Living in the suburbs of New York City, there are numerous different species of birds in her backyard.  Every morning, Nancy feeds the birds and learns more about them through books and on the Internet.  Nancy lives in Westchester County, New York with her husband, son, and daughter.

Five Reasons to Save Your Infant's Cord Blood with M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood Laboratories

1)                  We work with one of the country's leading public blood banks and M.A.Z.E. is the only way private individuals can access this exclusive technology for private cord blood banking.

2)                  Our state-of-the-art processing and storage techniques are top of the line.

3)                  Because we don't do extensive marketing, our customers pay about half of what other cord blood banks charge for the exact same service.

4)                  All of our cord blood is transported using chain-of-custody medical transport.

5)                  M.A.Z.E.'s staff always goes above and beyond to ensure success for your cord blood banking experience.

M.A.Z.E. Cord Blood
State-of-the-Art Cord Blood Banking at an Affordable Price
2975 Westchester Avenue
Purchase, NY 10577
(914) 683-0000
EMAIL: information@mazecordblood.com

www.mazecordblood.com