StemCell Therapy

WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

ViaCord, PerkinElmers family cord blood and tissue preservation business, is collaborating with the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) to collect, maintain and publish research from ViaCords cord blood stem cell transplants. This collaboration will expand knowledge of cord blood-derived stem cell applications throughout the medical and research community. To date, CIBMTRs large network of transplant centers has resulted in the development of a clinical database of more than 30,000 cord blood transplant recipients for clinical decision-making, use in studies, and other research purposes with the goal of making a profound impact on the survival of cord blood transplant patients around the world. CIBMTR will work directly with ViaCord to collect and analyze data to better understand the quality and any outcome metrics of ViaCords released cord blood stem cell units as well as how the units are being used.

Collaborating with CIBMTR, which has established the industry standard for collecting data around hematopoietic cellular therapy and regenerative medicine, allows us to simultaneously gain insights into the effectiveness of the cord blood stem cell units we have released for use as well as outcomes from their clinical application, said Morey Kraus, Chief Scientific Officer, ViaCord. We are then able to incorporate data from our transplanted units into the larger database, which may be accessed for other CIBMTR studies by the medical and scientific community to further their research and understanding of cord blood stem cells.

ViaCord is working with CIBMTR to collect and publish data as well as identify outcomes unique to related or autologous (stem cells from the same patient) transplants. The collaboration will also enable the analysis of umbilical cord units released for potential future use in autologous cell therapy and regenerative medicine clinical trials, including Cerebral Palsy, Type 1 Diabetes and others.

The science of cord blood and cord tissue stem cells is growing at a rapid pace, said J. Douglas Rizzo, M.D., M.S., Associate Scientific Director, CIBMTR. We are excited to collaborate with ViaCord to provide data and analytic expertise that will assist the development of the field through research.

ViaCord's family cord blood banking services currently offers expectant families the opportunity to preserve their baby's umbilical cord blood for potential medical use by the child or a related family member. Families are also preserving their babys umbilical cord tissue because research suggests that one day these special cells may have the potential to treat medical conditions that are untreatable today. ViaCord has preserved the umbilical cord blood of more than 300,000 newborns. Twenty years ago, cord blood stem cells were used to treat just one disease, Fanconi's anemia. Today, cord blood stem cells have been used in the treatment of nearly 80 diseases, including cancers, certain blood disorders and immunodeficiencies. Please visit http://www.viacord.com for more information.

Factors Affecting Future Performance This press release contains "forward-looking" statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements relating to estimates and projections of future earnings per share, cash flow and revenue growth and other financial results, developments relating to our customers and end-markets, and plans concerning business development opportunities and divestitures. Words such as "believes," "intends," "anticipates," "plans," "expects," "projects," "forecasts," "will" and similar expressions, and references to guidance, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements are based on management's current assumptions and expectations and no assurances can be given that our assumptions or expectations will prove to be correct. A number of important risk factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results described, implied or projected in any forward-looking statements. These factors include, without limitation: (1) markets into which we sell our products declining or not growing as anticipated; (2) fluctuations in the global economic and political environments; (3) our failure to introduce new products in a timely manner; (4) our ability to execute acquisitions and license technologies, or to successfully integrate acquired businesses and licensed technologies into our existing business or to make them profitable, or successfully divest businesses; (5) our failure to adequately protect our intellectual property; (6) the loss of any of our licenses or licensed rights; (7) our ability to compete effectively; (8) fluctuation in our quarterly operating results and our ability to adjust our operations to address unexpected changes; (9) significant disruption in third-party package delivery and import/export services or significant increases in prices for those services; (10) disruptions in the supply of raw materials and supplies; (11) the manufacture and sale of products exposing us to product liability claims; (12) our failure to maintain compliance with applicable government regulations; (13) regulatory changes; (14) our failure to comply with healthcare industry regulations; (15) economic, political and other risks associated with foreign operations; (16) our ability to retain key personnel; (17) significant disruption in our information technology systems; (18) our ability to obtain future financing; (19) restrictions in our credit agreements; (20) our ability to realize the full value of our intangible assets; (21) significant fluctuations in our stock price; (22) reduction or elimination of dividends on our common stock; and (23) other factors which we describe under the caption "Risk Factors" in our most recent quarterly report on Form 10-Q and in our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We disclaim any intention or obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of developments occurring after the date of this press release.

About the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research(CIBMTR) A combined research program of the National Marrow Donor Program and the Medical College of Wisconsin, the CIBMTR facilitates critical, cutting-edge research that has led to increased survival and an enriched quality of life for thousands of patients. The CIBMTR collaborates with the global scientific community to advance hematopoietic cell transplantation and cellular therapy research worldwide. The prospective and observational research is accomplished through scientific and statistical expertise, a large network of transplant centers and clinical database of more than 350,000 transplant recipients.

About PerkinElmer, Inc. PerkinElmer, Inc. is a global leader focused on improving the health and safety of people and the environment. The company reported revenue of approximately $2.1 billion in 2012, has about 7,500 employees serving customers in more than 150 countries, and is a component of the S&P 500 Index. Additional information is available through 1-877-PKI-NYSE, or at http://www.perkinelmer.com.

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ViaCord® to Advance Cord Blood Stem Cell Therapy Research through Collaboration with the Center for International ...

This entry was posted on April 30, 2013 at 11:46 am and is filed under Cell Therapy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed. |