Smart Cells International has continued its commitment to customer care with a new appointment, designed to improve quality standards and enhance the experience of those using its stem cell storage service.

Tracey is an NHS non-exec board member and joins Smart Cells with an impressive industry track record. She hopes to use her experience, plus her female empathy, to fine-tune Smart Cells’ service with the customer in mind, as Founder and Chief Executive, Shamshad Ahmed comments:

“Tracey’s appointment will help us to continue offering excellent aftercare to our existing customers, while improving the whole process of interaction for new customers. From initial contact, through to collection, storage and advice, we are determined to offer our customers the highest levels of care. We want them to enjoy peace of mind through experiencing a service that matches our pedigree as the UK’s longest established stem cell storage company. ”

For further information, visit http://www.smartcells.com. Comment, interviews and images are available on request.

Ends         5 December 2007

Notes to Editors

About Smart Cells

Founded in 2001, Smart Cells International is one of the world’s leading stem cell storage companies and is the longest established in the UK. Smart Cells has safely collected and stored umbilical cord stem cells for thousands of parents, all over the world, helping to ensure their children’s future health.

Smart Cells exceeds all current UK and EU directives and regulations and is ISO9001:2000 accredited. The Smart Cells Laboratory is regulated by the HTA (The Human Tissue Authority) and is also unique in being a fully licensed tissue bank; the largest in the UK. Smart Cells also has a licence for procurement with the HTA.

Once the umbilical cord stem cells have been separated from the blood, they are hermetically sealed in a sterile pouch, which is placed in an aluminium cassette. The samples are stored in vaults at temperatures of below -180°C, halting the aging process and allowing the long-term preservation and storage.

About Stem Cells

Stem cells are the unspecific early cells that can grow into specific cells that make up our tissues, bodies and vital organs. Compared to adult stem cells, umbilical cord blood stem cells are more flexible and proliferate better because they are pure and naïve.

Stem cell therapy is already used to treat many diseases including Leukaemia, whereby the cells are used to help regenerate a patient’s immune system following a course of chemotherapy. Umbilical cord blood stem cells have also been successfully used to treat more than 70 other life diseases and disorders.

Umbilical cord stem cell storage begins with umbilical core blood being taken from the placenta and umbilical cord after it has been detached from the newborn baby. Smart cells then separate the blood and harvest the stem cells, storing them safely for 25 years with the option to continue after this period.