Cord Blood Registry (CBR) Reports Increased Consumer Demand and Record Sales for First Half of 2005
Related News: Cord Blood Stem CellsSAN BRUNO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 27, 2005--Cord Blood Registry (CBR), the leader in the rapidly growing market for family cord blood banking, reported record sales and growth in the first six months of 2005 compared to the same period in 2004. For the first half of 2005, CBR reported:
-- Enrollment growth of 122% over the first half of 2004
-- Revenue growth of 116% over the first half of 2004
"Rapidly increasing consumer demand, and correspondingly, CBR's growth, continues to show remarkable results," said Johnnie Domingue, Cord Blood Registry's VP, COO, and CFO. "The number of client units stored in this past six months is up by 135% over the first six months of last year and we now store over 350,000 units. It is a clear indication of the strength of CBR, the quality of our service, and the increasing value of saving newborn stem cells for family use."
CBR's annualized revenue run rate based on recent activity is reported to be approximately $68 million and has increased steadily for the past eleven quarters with more accelerated growth in the last five quarters. For a comparison to public companies in this sector, please see ViaCell, Inc. ("VIAC") and Cryo-Cell International, Inc. ("CCEL.OB").
Emerging therapies in the areas of regenerative medicine, tissue engineering, and gene therapy are continuing to evolve, and the number of people who will benefit from banking newborn stem cells will significantly increase over time. To date, CBR has provided more samples for use in medical treatments than any family cord blood bank. Two of the most recent CBR cases involved the use of newborn stem cells to treat damage resulting from brain injury.
"We believe that having your own newborn stem cells available to use in treating neurological damage or age-related conditions, such as damaged heart tissue after a heart attack, will be advantageous," said Stephen Grant, VP of Communications and co-founder of CBR. "Families who save their newborns' stem cells will be in a position to take advantage of therapies aimed at treating medical conditions that we've only been able to dream about in the past. As a broader spectrum of therapies becomes available, we believe that the odds that a newborn will use his or her banked cord blood during their lifetime is as high as 1 in 2."
CBR believes the market for family cord blood banking to be one million births annually. Currently, stem cells can be used to treat over 75 serious illnesses such as leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell anemia, and other life-threatening conditions. Medical studies demonstrate superior outcomes when using stem cells from a genetically related family member compared to using unrelated cells.
About CBR
CBR is the world's largest newborn stem cell bank. CBR's laboratory has been collecting and processing newborn stem cells for family banking since 1992. The company has recorded profits from its operating activities since 1999, with an acceleration in profit growth in recent quarters. Units of newborn stem cells for client families are preserved at CBR's new 80,000 square-foot facility in Tucson, Arizona. The company's research and development is focused on advancing the collection, processing, and storage methods to optimize quality and cell yield. Additionally, CBR facilitates collection of donated research samples which are made available for the nearly 200 research programs worldwide that are focused on stem cell expansion and cell-based therapies. For more information, visit http://www.cordblood.com, or call 1-888-CORD BLOOD. Cord Blood Registry is a registered trademark of Cbr Systems, Inc. Online media kit: http://www.cordblood.com/cord_blood_news/media/media_kit/index.asp
Contact:
Cord Blood Registry
Rita Kennen, 650-635-1420 ext.239
rkennen@cordblood.com
Posted on July 27, 2005 05:28 PM