Newborn Possibilities program for babies at-risk for neurological injury

For every 1,000 children born in the U.S. today, two to three are at risk for developing cerebral palsy because of injuries to the brain that may have occurred prior to or during birth. There is currently no cure for cerebral palsy, but Newborn Possibilities is a first-of-its-kind program recently launched in Tucson, which may offer new options for newborns at-risk for neurological injury.

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The goal of Newborn Possibilities is to ensure that the cord blood stem cells of children born at-risk for developing cerebral palsy are preserved, so that if a child is diagnosed with the condition, he or she may be eligible to receive a new treatment being researched under approval from the FDA using the child's own cord blood stem cells.  The program is being jointly launched in Tucson by Cord Blood Registry, the world's largest stem cell bank; Save the Cord Foundation, a nonprofit advocacy organization based in Tucson; Tucson Medical Center, the region's leading birthing hospital; and Watching Over Mothers and Babies Foundation (WOMB), a local non-profit research foundation.

The program, which provides cord blood banking services through Cord Blood Registry at no cost to the family, will enroll nearly 700 children in its first year.

"We are excited about launching the Newborn Possibilities Program in Tucson, which is really the birthplace of family cord blood banking," stated Tom Moore, chief executive officer of CBR.  "This program is a way for us to provide a safety net to children at-risk for cerebral palsy and other forms of neonatal brain injury while helping to advance the science of regenerative medicine.  CBR and our collaborators in this unique program share a commitment to advance cord blood stem cell research, expand education about the value of cord blood banking, and improve outcomes for children with neurological disabilities."

"We believe that cord blood will play a very important role in future medicine and will benefit so many children in our community at risk for cerebral palsy," said Anne Sarabia and Charis Ober, founders of the Save the Cord Foundation.  "Our dream is that this program will inspire other medical institutions to follow and make preserving cord blood the standard of care for all newborns."

"The Newborn Possibilities Program is laying the groundwork for potential new treatment options for cerebral palsy and neurological disorders by connecting patients who may be at risk for these conditions and who have access to their cord blood stem cells with FDA-approved research studies," said Dr. Hugh Miller, the head of WOMB and a maternal-fetal medicine specialist who directs the Newborn Possibilities Program at Tucson Medical Center.  "We believe this program will be instrumental in accelerating the pace of research and potentially helping many children."

A growing body of published data suggests that a child's own newborn stem cells from the umbilical cord may play an important role in helping the body repair damage to nerve and brain tissue.  This research has led the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to approve a human clinical trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of using a child's own newborn blood stem cells to treat cerebral palsy.