Blood and Marrow Transplant Program

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Processing Laboratory
The Family Link Cord Blood Storage Program is housed within the Blood and Marrow Transplant Laboratory of Norton Healthcare. Once received at the lab, your baby’s cord blood is frozen and stored by certified lab technologists who use validated techniques and equipment for stem cell cryopreservation, including automated rate freezers and continuously monitored, vapor phase nitrogen storage facilities. The laboratory has integrated current manufacturing practices for stem cell procedures (collection, transport, testing, processing, cryopreservation and storage) with the latest published cord blood data. The program continues to collaborate with knowledgeable authorities from established centers in the United States in order to stay current on related cord blood findings.

Certifications and Accreditations
The Blood and Marrow Transplant Laboratory is accredited by the American Association of Blood Banks (AABB) for hematopoietic progenitor cell activities as well as for cord blood activities. The Blood and Marrow Transplant Lab also holds accreditations from the Foundation for Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT) and the College of American Pathologists (CAP). The lab is FDA registered and CLIA certified. The Family Link program is a licensed cord blood bank with PharmaStem Therapeutics Inc.

Clinical Team
The Blood and Marrow Transplant Program provides transplant-related services for pediatric patients at Kosair Children’s Hospital in Louisville, Ky.  Kosair Children’s Hospital is a member of the Pediatric Blood & Marrow Transplant Consortium and is a Children’s Oncology Group Bone Marrow Transplant Center. The pediatric transplant program is a part of the University of Louisville Blood and Marrow Transplant (ULBMT) Program, with adult bone marrow transplant services at the James Graham Brown Cancer Center and the University of Louisville Hospital. The ULBMT Program is accredited by the FACT and is a member of the National Marrow Donor Program, the International Bone Marrow Transplant Registry and the Autologous Blood and Marrow Transplant Registry.

Medical Co-directors 

Salvatore J. Bertolone, M.D.  Dr. Bertolone, a pediatric hematologist/oncologist, is director of pediatric hematology/oncology at Kosair Children’s Hospital. He is professor of pediatrics and chief of the division of hematology/oncology in the University of Louisville School of Medicine Department of Pediatrics. A graduate of the University of Louisville School of Medicine, Dr. Bertolone completed fellowships at the University of Colorado, Fitzsimons Army Medical Center in Denver and Denver Children’s Oncology Center. He has held teaching positions with the University of Colorado School of Medicine Departments of Pediatrics and Neurosurgery, as well as the University of Louisville James Graham Brown Cancer Center. Dr. Bertolone is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and the subspecialty Board of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology. He is a fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and a member of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Southern Association for Oncology, American Society of Hematology, International Society for Hematotherapy and Graft Engineering, and the American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation.

Team Members

More Information

For more information, a detailed brochure or an enrollment packet for the Family Link Cord Blood Storage Program, click here or call (502) 629-1234 or (888) 4-U-NORTON.

To speak with a member of the laboratory or clinical staff, call (502) 629-7771.