The Stem Cell Source : CBR

After Brain Injury from Near-Drowning: Girl’s Own Cord Blood Used in Experimental Therapy

PublicAffairs — Fri, 30 Jul 2010 16:31:00 GMT

Swimming pools are a well-recognized symbol of summertime fun. But they also can be a life-threatening hazard for children.

Drowning is the second leading cause of injury-related death of children under 14 and the leading cause of death for children under four [1, 2]. Nearly as tragic are the statistics for children who survive a near drowning. At least one third of near-drowning survivors sustain moderate to severe neurologic damage [3].

According to an interview of Tonya Morris on Keeping It Together, that was the case for her daughter, a little girl named Sparrow Morris, who fell into the family’s backyard pool trying to fill a watering can when she was just shy of two-years-old. Tonya estimates that Sparrow was down for about 45 minutes after being pulled from the water until rescue workers were able to revive her after administering CPR. Because of severe oxygen deprivation which resulted in damaged tissue in her brain, doctors did not expect her to live, let alone recover near age-appropriate mental and physical capabilities.

Her mother reports that today Sparrow is a thriving four-year-old who does everything from jumping on the trampoline to attending mainstream preschool. Her journey to recovery has involved physical therapy and tutoring as well as an experimental treatment one year after her near drowning: an infusion of her own cord blood stem cells.

According to Tonya, “We saw the value in cord blood and realized someday our child might be able to use it when the research is there.” Tonya never expected to use it so soon in Sparrow’s life.

Sparrow, whose cord blood was banked with CBR, was able to participate in a program evaluating the use of cord blood to help heal the brain after an injury, such as one caused by lack of oxygen. The study is in the initial stages, and it is not yet known whether cord blood stem cells can be used to effectively treat brain injury.

Tonya shares her full story during a segment of Keeping it Together, an on-line radio show hosted by safety expert Alison Rhodes, also known as The Safety Mom. As part of the same segment, Alison interviews Dr. Marra Francis, an ob-gyn from Texas who believes in educating every mother about the significance of cord blood stem cells and the options for preserving them.

“I tell every one of my new patients that [babies do] not know if they are wearing a ‘onesie’ from Wal-Mart or if they’re in a designer one. They’ll throw up on both of them just the same,” said Dr. Francis. “I also tell them that the two things they will purchase that could potentially save their babies lives are a good car seat and cord blood banking.”

The Safety Mom’s interview with Tonya Morris and Dr. Marra Francis can be heard here.

References:
[1] National SAFE KIDS Campaign. Drowning fact sheet. 2004, National SAFE KIDS Campaign: Washington, DC.
[2] National Center for Injury Prevention and Control. Web-based injury statistics query and reporting system (WISQARS). 2005. http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars. Accessed on August 31, 2005.
[3] http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/908677-overview Author: Michael J Verive, MD, Director, Pediatric Intensive Care, Department of Pediatric Critical Care, Mount Sinai Hospital; Program Director, Pediatric Intensive Care, Hope Children's Hospital

Cord Blood Stem Cells Treat Spinal Cord Injury in Animal Study

PublicAffairs — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 16:20:00 GMT

A study published this month in the journal Spine, found that stem cells from a human newborn umbilical cord can improve neurologic function of rats after an acute spinal cord injury.

The rats treated in the study with cord blood stem cells experienced a significantly improved recovery of locomotor function (the ability to move from place to place) over a six week period compared to untreated rats. In addition, six weeks after treatment, the injured area was noticeably smaller in the treated animals than in the untreated animals.

Most spinal cord injuries are compression injuries, in which the damaged nerve cells in the spinal cord are still intact, but have lost a coating called myelin that helps them transmit signals from the brain to the rest of the body, leaving them nonfunctional. Lost myelin does not regularly grow back on its own following an injury, and so the goal of this study was to determine if cord blood stem cells could help initiate its regeneration in rats with compression injuries to the spinal cord.

Research to date has shown increasing evidence that stem cells from cord blood have the ability to help with repairing and regenerating other cells in the body by helping to regulate inflammation, assisting with the growth of new blood vessels (angiogenesis) and promoting cellular growth by secreting proteins and other growth factors.

This study adds to the growing body of evidence that supports the therapeutic use of cord blood stem cells for nerve repair.

A Gift for Life

PublicAffairs — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 23:04:00 GMT

Many expecting parents are not aware of the medical value of stem cells from a newborn’s umbilical cord or the options for preserving them. That’s why July has been designated as Cord Blood Awareness Month by the National Health Information Center and a society of the American Hospital Association. If you don’t know the facts, check out the Cord Blood Education Center developed by CBR.

Many parents are also unaware that if you divide out the total cost of cord blood processing and annual storage at CBR for the first 18 years of a child’s life, banking a newborn’s cord blood costs less than a typical cell phone plan—about $18 per month.

But having a baby involves many costs – and they all hit the family budget at about the same time. That’s why this year during Cord Blood Awareness Month, we want to make expectant couples aware of a unique program that allows friends and families to contribute the entire cost of cord blood banking: The CBR Gift Registry.

Through The CBR Gift Registry, expectant parents can receive contributions toward both the initial collection and processing fees as well as the annual storage costs. Inviting friends and family members to contribute is easy: After you’ve enrolled in The CBR Gift Registry, you can send customized email announcements or print contribution cards to include in baby shower invitations.

Starting this month, parents can sign up for The CBR Gift Registry even before enrolling in CBR’s service. It’s a gift for life that your newborn won’t outgrow.

Getting Smart about Cord Blood Banking

PublicAffairs — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 22:47:00 GMT

July has been designated Cord Blood Awareness Month by the National Health Information Center and a society of the American Hospital Association, with the goal of educating others about the medical value of cord blood stem cells. To recognize the occasion, throughout the month we’ll be highlighting useful information and resources for parents who want to learn more about cord blood banking.

While awareness of the medical value of cord blood stem cells is on the rise, the need for more education remains. According to a 2006 study published in the Journal of Reproductive Medicine, three out of four expectant mothers who have heard of cord blood banking consider themselves minimally informed.

The need for greater education was the driving force behind the creation of the Cord Blood Education Center, an online program that informs expectant parents about their options for cord blood. Developed by CBR with input from healthcare providers, stem cell researchers and experts in public banking, the program describes all of the options available to expectant parents and is designed to give them access to information early enough in pregnancy so that they can make an informed choice about the storage, donation or disposal of their newborn’s cord blood stem cells.

Even if you are aware about cord blood stem cells, you may not know all of the facts. We invite you to take a moment to explore the Cord Blood Education Center and be sure to pass it on to others who can benefit from cord blood education.

Happy Father’s Day!

PublicAffairs — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 21:54:00 GMT

Fathers are a special bunch. With Dad’s guidance, many of us learned how to ride a bike, throw a ball, cook the perfect hamburger and drive a car. They also taught us valuable life lessons, such as the importance of honesty, integrity and taking responsibility for our actions.

In honor of Father’s Day this weekend and in celebration of fathers everywhere, we bring you a few of our favorite quotes about some of the most important men in our lives. Here’s to you, Dad!

When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned in seven years. -- Mark Twain

Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is soap on a rope. -- Bill Cosby

The older I get, the smarter my father seems to get. --Tim Russert

I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father's protection. -- Sigmund Freud

It’s only when you grow up and step back from him―or leave him for your own home―it’s only then that you can measure his greatness and fully appreciate it. – Margaret Truman (spoken about her father, Harry S. Truman)

To the more than 330,000 CBR dads out there: Happy Father’s Day! Be proud of who you are and what you do!

Study Shows Lyophilized Heparin is More Effective at Preserving Cord Blood Stem Cells than Commonly-Used Anticoagulant

PublicAffairs — Tue, 25 May 2010 18:03:00 GMT

Because clinical research has shown that stem cell count is an important factor that can affect treatment results, CBR developed a proprietary anticoagulant -- lyophilized heparin -- in an effort to increase the number of cord blood stem cells viable for preservation. According to a study presented at an international cellular meeting demonstrating that lyophilized heparin is able to preserve the number of viable cord blood stem cells over a longer time period compared to the commonly-used anticoagulant, citrate phosphate dextrose (CPD).

Cord blood has a tendency to coagulate – or form clots – after it’s been collected, which can interfere with stem cell processing and preservation. To prevent clotting, cord blood collection devices are pre-loaded with an anticoagulant. CPD, which has been commercially-available for decades, was originally developed to extend the shelf life of red blood cells collected for use in blood transfusion therapies for patients with severe blood loss or anemia. However, red blood cells are typically discarded in the process of saving cord blood stem cells. Consequently, CBR developed its proprietary lyophilized heparin with the goal of preserving cord blood stem cells--instead of red blood cells.

CBR’s research and development efforts continue to ensure the optimal numbers of stem cells available for medical use.

Click here to read more about the study results, as well as other advantages of lyophilized heparin over CPD.

Virginia 18th State to Legislate Cord Blood Education

PublicAffairs — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 18:37:00 GMT

Last week, the Governor of Virginia, Bob McDonnell, signed the state’s Cord Blood Education Bill (HB85) into law requiring the State Department of Health to publish information on its website about cord blood stem cells and parents’ options of preserving them. The new law also requires prenatal care physicians to educate expectant parents about their options early enough in pregnancy so that they can make an informed decision about whether to privately bank their child’s newborn stem cells or donate them to a public bank.

With the passage of the Virginia law, 18 states -- representing two-thirds of the U.S. population -- now benefit from state-endorsed education on cord blood stem cells and the private and public cord blood banking options available to parents.

The increasing number of states to enact cord blood education legislation stems from recommendations that were first issued by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) in 2004. In a comprehensive report to Congress analyzing the issues involved with creating a national banking program, the IOM included two key recommendations highlighting the need to help all expectant parents make an informed choice about the storage or disposal of their newborn's cord blood stem cells and to provide education on all cord blood banking options prior to labor and delivery:

According to Dr. George Bronsky, OB-GYN and Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist at Fairfax Hospital, parents have the right to informed choice:

“Because expectant parents have only one opportunity to preserve their child’s cord blood, they have the right to be educated about their options,” he said. “There are many current therapeutic uses for these cells, and research is already underway that may soon lead to treatments using a child’s own cord blood for conditions such as juvenile diabetes and cerebral palsy. Despite the value of these cells, published data shows that three out of every four pregnant women consider themselves only ‘minimally informed’.”

CBR’s New Collection System Saves More Newborn Stem Cells for More Therapeutic Uses

PublicAffairs — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 18:28:00 GMT

CBR today announced the launch of two industry-leading innovations rolled into one: a new stem cell collection system that preserves a greater number and broader diversity of newborn stem cells -- from cord blood as well as the umbilical cord tissue itself – for potential use in a wider range of medical uses. The new collection system includes: 1) an improved cord blood collection device that collects 30 percent more cord blood, and 2) a new supplementary option to preserve a section of umbilical cord tissue, which is a rich source of mesenchymal cells (MSCs).

As reported in some of our previous blog posts, MSCs are a type of stem cell that are the building blocks of bone, cartilage, and connective tissue, and mediate the body’s inflammatory response to damaged or injured cells. With more than 80 clinical trials currently underway in the U.S., researchers are becoming increasingly interested in the potential of MSCs to treat many different conditions, such as heart disease; stroke; bone disease and injury; and autoimmune diseases like type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis. Researchers are also investigating the potential of MSCs to heal common joint and sports injuries.* Because umbilical cord tissue has significantly more MSCs than the cord blood, CBR’s new collection system preserves a section of umbilical cord tissue, so that the newborn MSCs contained in the tissue can be later processed for medical application.

In terms of cord blood, having more stem cells stored and available for treatment can result in better clinical outcomes and may facilitate multiple uses in regenerative medicine applications. Although CBR’s 99 percent cell recovery rate is already the highest in the industry, the company’s philosophy of pursuing continuous improvement led CBR to look for ways to increase the amount of cord blood initially collected, thus leading to higher overall stem cell recovery. CBR’s new cord blood collection device helps the physician to better visualize the collection as well as assist in dislodging a clot or tissue plug, which may lead to higher volume collections. Increasing the collection volume of cord blood ultimately will yield more stem cells preserved for future use.

Click here to see video animation of the diversity of stem cells in the umbilical cord blood and cord tissue.

*Note: Medical treatments using cord tissue are still under development and have not yet been used in humans

Cord Blood Banks are Not Stem Cell Clinics

PublicAffairs — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 19:55:00 GMT

A recent story filed by Agence France-Presse (AFP), a Paris-based news service, offered a very misleading perspective on the current state of cord blood banking as well as the legitimate medical use of cord blood stem cells.

In essence, the reporter failed to recognize the difference between overseas “stem cell clinics” offering “unproven cures” and accredited cord blood banks in the U.S. that are facilitating FDA-approved research using a child’s own cord blood stem cells for new medical uses.

The story focused on comments made by one stem cell researcher, Dr. Irving Weissman, at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Dr. Weissman appropriately denounces the practices of non-accredited “stem cell clinics,” which are often based in foreign countries with poor medical regulations, that offer infusions of stem cells as definitive treatments for a wide range of conditions. Several medical bodies and institutions have raised concerns about the inability of these clinics to substantiate their medical claims as well as the risk they pose to patient safety.

This is very different from the scientifically-valid and regulatory-approved research occurring in countries like the U.S. where pioneering physicians are studying the use of a child’s own cord blood stem cells as treatments for type 1 diabetes(1) and cerebral palsy(2). In fact, just last week Medical College of Georgia announced a new FDA-approved clinical trial to evaluate the use of a child’s own cord blood stem cells to treat cerebral palsy. It’s important to know that participants in these clinical trials were eligible because they had access to their own, genetically-unique cord blood stem cells because their parents made the decision to privately bank them at birth.

The protocols for these clinical trials require participants to have access to their own cord blood stem cells because they provide a guaranteed biological tissue match, do not require preparatory therapies like chemotherapy, do not pose the immune complications of donor cell infusions, and eliminate the need for anti-rejection drugs which can create complications. In other words, using a child’s own cord blood stem cells allows researchers to explore the potential of these cells in a way that is safe for patients.

It’s also important to note, that cord blood stem cells have been used for more than two decades to treat nearly 80 conditions, including certain cancers, blood disorders and immune diseases. Furthermore, stem cell researchers and leading medical organizations recognize that cord blood stem cells have unique characteristics. In fact, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists states that cord blood stem cells “offers several distinct advantages” over other sources of stem cells when used in treatments for these types of conditions(3).

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(1)Clincialtrials.gov. Umbilical Cord Blood Infusion to Treat Type 1 Diabetes. University of Florida. http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00305344?term=cord+blood+and+diabetes&rank=1. Accessed February 2010.
(2)Clinicaltrials.gov. Safety and Effectiveness of Cord Blood Stem Cell Infusion for the Treatment of Cerebral Palsy in Children. Medical College of Georgia. http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01072370?term=cerebral+palsy+and+cord+blood&rank=1. Accessed February 2010.
(3)ACOG Committee Opinion. Umbilical Cord Blood Banking. Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2008;111(2):475-477.

Newborn Possibilities Fund: Helping Infants Go the Distance

PublicAffairs — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 17:24:00 GMT

In our last post, we introduced the Newborn Possibilities Program, a first-of-its-kind initiative launched in-part by CBR to ensure that children born at-risk for neurological damage and disability – conditions like cerebral palsy – are given every opportunity to participate in new medical research using their own newborn stem cells. CBR collects the cord blood of the infants in this program at no charge.

Today we are pleased to introduce the Newborn Possibilities Fund which is being established to provide financial assistance to families who may have difficulty participating in this new medical research due to significant expenses, like travel costs or lost days at work. One of the first trials being supported by the fund is the first FDA-approved clinical trial studying the use of cord blood stem cells to treat cerebral palsy.

On February 26-27, a team of 12 employees at CBR will be running a 200-mile race from Prescott to Mesa, Arizona (called the Ragnar Relay Del Sol) to raise money for the Newborn Possibilities Fund.

You can help with your generous support. We’ve set up a website to accept pledges and will collect funds after the race is complete. We invite you to support this worthy cause — and ask your friends and family to participate as well. And, CBR will match the total amount raised by the Ragnar running team dollar for dollar!

Whether you pledge $20 (a dime a mile) or $200 (a dollar a mile), every pledge will go to helping to better understand the role cord blood stem cells may play in helping children with cerebral palsy.

Go to NewbornPossibilites.com to learn more.

CBR Only Cord Blood Bank to Participate in First FDA-Approved Cerebral Palsy Stem Cell Trial

PublicAffairs — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 18:37:00 GMT

Earlier today the Medical College of Georgia, the state's health sciences university, announced it will be initiating the first FDA-approved clinical trial evaluating the use of a child’s own cord blood stem cells as a medical intervention for cerebral palsy.

CBR is the only cord blood bank participating in this study. Investigators designed the protocol with this requirement to ensure that all cord blood stem cells included in the study have been processed and stored consistently and with the same high level of quality.

The study will include 40 children, ages 2 to 12, whose cord blood has been stored with Cord Blood Registry. Children will begin the study with a neurological exam. Then, half of the study participants will receive an infusion of their own cord blood while the other half receives a placebo. Three months later, the children will be evaluated without physicians knowing which group received the stem cell infusion. Afterward, children who didn’t get the cord blood initially will receive an infusion. Children in the study will return three and six months later for evaluation, where researchers will assess their motor skills and neurological development.

The framework for this study is supported by a body of research which has shown that cord blood stem cells have the ability to migrate to injured areas in the brain and stimulate repair. Researchers believe that the cord blood stem cells may help initiate a healing process in the brain that may not have occurred without intervention. Early investigational work studying children with various forms of brain injury was pioneered at Duke University. To date, 70 children whose cord blood was stored at CBR have been treated at Duke. (See our blog on Chloe Levine’s progress)

For more information about this study, please call the MCG Section of Pediatric Neurology at 706-721-3371. Based on these criteria, CBR clients who believe their child may be eligible for the study should contact the CBR Transplant Center at 888-536-8517.

18 Years of Experience Matter!

PublicAffairs — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 16:43:00 GMT

On the path from birth to maturity, reaching one’s 18th birthday is a very significant milestone. It’s an important achievement that validates, among many things, the training, development and experience necessary to take on life’s challenges.

This year, CBR officially marks our 18th anniversary. Not only were we the first family bank to store newborn stem cells for future use, but we continue to be the global leader and innovator in cord blood banking.

Our success is driven by a philosophy of continuous improvement built on a foundation of unparalleled industry experience. And experience matters, especially in an industry like ours that represents a rapidly evolving area of science and technology.

Today, the operations in CBR’s state-of-the-art, 80,000 square foot laboratory facility – the largest in the world – are governed by hundreds of written standard operating procedures (SOPs). As the industry pioneer, we didn’t have a roadmap or a manual we could copy. We wrote the book – literally.

Over time, other banks have followed us. Some are still in business, but others are not. Some are just beginning to learn the complexity of running their own laboratory. The process of preserving newborn stem cells from cord blood is delicate and complex. It takes experience to do it well, and at CBR we do it very well. In fact, CBR’s proprietary collection and processing technologies enable us to have the highest cell recovery rate in the industry, so we are able to preserve more stem cells for medical use than any other family bank. And, after 18 years, we’ve successfully processed the cord blood of more than 300,000 newborns.

In this blog, we talk a lot about why newborn stem cells from the umbilical cord are unique. It’s also important to understand what makes CBR unique. Experience matters.

300,000 Reasons to Celebrate the Future of Regenerative Medicine

PublicAffairs — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:05:00 GMT

CBR recently processed and stored the newborn stem cells from the cord blood of its 300,000th client. This is a milestone that’s important not just because of its sheer size, but, more importantly, because of what it means for CBR’s leadership role in advancing regenerative medicine.

A population of 300,000 people is equivalent to a mid-sized U.S. city like New Orleans, Pittsburgh or Tampa. What happens to the children in cities of this size can also happen to the children whose parents made the decision to entrust the preservation of their child’s newborn stem cells with CBR.

Based on U.S. government data on the incidence of disease, this means that of the children who have newborn stem cells safely stored at CBR, by the age of six:

• 1,832 may suffer a traumatic brain injury;
• 925 may suffer from cerebral palsy;
• 718 may have suffered acquired hearing loss; and
• 189 may suffer a stroke – either before birth or after.

These are all neurological conditions that have no cure today. However, a growing body of research suggests that the newborn stem cells from a child’s own cord blood may play a role in changing the course of these conditions by helping the body to regenerate damaged tissue and restore lost function.

To help advance this research, CBR’s Center for Regenerative Medicine is playing the critical role of matching the researchers who are focused on evaluating the use of cord blood in the treatment of these conditions . . . with the children who have these conditions . . . AND who have access to their own newborn stem cells.

As CBR assists more researchers in initiating human clinical trials, individuals who have access to their own newborn stem cells may be among the first to benefit from these emerging new therapies.

However, in order for researchers to be able to know what’s possible with newborn stem cells, they must be saved. We salute the parents and families of the 300,000+ children whose cells are stored with us for their foresight and confidence in the potential of regenerative medicine. We, too, look to the future with great optimism and are committed to leading the advancement of regenerative stem cell medicine.

Fox News’ Dr. Manny Files Follow-Up Story on Girl Treated With Her Own Newborn Stem Cells

PublicAffairs — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:19:00 GMT

Some of the most enthusiastic proponents of cord blood banking are families who have firsthand knowledge of its benefits, and the Levine family is no exception. In a one-year follow up story, Dr. Manny Alvarez of Fox News follows the progress of Chloe Levine, a girl with cerebral palsy who was treated with her own newborn stem cells.

When Chloe was one year old, her parents, Jenny and Ryan, received news that she had suffered from an in-utero stroke before birth, resulting in a diagnosis of right-sided Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy. Fortunately the Levines had banked Chloe’s cord blood with CBR, which allowed her to undergo an infusion of her own stem cells as part of a study at Duke University.

Prior to her treatment, Chloe held her hand in a tight fist, was not holding a bottle, couldn’t push herself up, and was not able to crawl like other babies her age, instead shuffling across the room. Within four days of Chloe’s infusion, the Levines began to see dramatic changes in their little girl. Chloe, who was nearly paralyzed on her right side, began to lose the rigidity and stiffness in her body, could lift both arms over her head, and began running and jumping. Today, Fox News reports that Chloe’s progress is still evident: "Her life is completely normal, she doesn’t drag her right foot, she can use her right hand," Jenny Levine said. "She rides a bike, a scooter…we’re taking her skiing this year. She’s fabulous."

Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg, professor of pediatrics and pathology at Duke University who is conducting the cerebral palsy study, said she “does not know how long the effects of cord blood will last on kids like Chloe, but if there is a good chance it will be ‘durable and last indefinitely’."

Chloe’s stem cell treatment represents a growing area of interest where researchers today are investigating the use of one’s own cord blood to treat ailments such as brain injury, neurological disorders, and type I diabetes. Considering the emerging research in the field, the value of cord blood stem cells is not always realized. Dr. Charles Cox, an expert in pediatric brain injury at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston points out that if parents choose not to save their child’s cord blood, it is discarded as medical waste.

"Really, the issue of cord blood banking today comes down to trying to understand what the future holds in terms of regenerative medicine as a field," Cox said. "So, the long-term look is, and even the intermediate-term look is that it’s not science-fiction. I see it expanding and accelerating over the next two to five years."

View the Fox News Health video story about Chloe’s post reinfusion here

Read about Chloe’s story online at FoxNews.com

Achieving Happy, Healthy First Birthdays . . . And Many More Beyond

PublicAffairs — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 21:18:00 GMT

Helping parents protect and celebrate the health of their children is CBR’s primary mission and a driving force behind everything we do.

Years ago, we decided to start sending every child whose cord blood is banked with us a copy of Karen Katz’s classic children’s story, “Where Is Baby’s Belly Button?” on his or her first birthday. It’s a tradition that serves as a reminder to us – and to our clients – about what makes CBR unique.

This year we decided to take this tradition one step further. Since our inception, a driving force of our culture has been to “give back” to the communities we serve. It is in this spirit that we are pleased to announce a new partnership we have formed with First Candle, a leading national nonprofit organization focused on promoting safe pregnancies and the survival of babies through the first years of life.

In recognition of our common goal – ensuring that more babies achieve a happy, healthy first birthday – CBR is making an annual donation to First Candle in celebration of our clients' first birthdays. Our contribution is intended to highlight the great work that First Candle does as well as to recognize the work that is still left to do.

First Candle provides a wealth of resources for new and expectant parents during pregnancy and after delivery as well as a wide range of information for nurses and other healthcare providers. For more information about First Candle, you can visit their Website at http://www.firstcandle.org/.