Police examine Cord Blood Bank of Canada after mom raises questions about Health Canada inspection

A Greater Toronto Area military use has non-stop an review into a Toronto-based Cord Blood Bank of Canada after receiving a censure from a Burlington, Ont., lady who recently detected a company, storing her son’s cord blood, was found non-compliant by Health Canada.

Halton Regional Police told CBC Toronto they “have concerns about intensity misappropriation of funds” after receiving a censure from Juliana Vasiljevic.

“The censure we perceived is that chairman has some concerns that use was not possibly entirely supposing or supposing during all,” pronounced Det.-Sgt. Chris Lawson.

Bernadette Ellison, a CEO of Cord Blood Bank of Canada, pronounced by her counsel that she was contacted by an officer who requested created acknowledgment that a customer no longer wanted to compensate a annual storage fee. As of Jul 28, Ellison pronounced that was “satisfactory to a military and they have not communicated with her since.”

Vasiljevic had motionless she wanted to store a potentially life-saving branch cells in her son Ewan’s umbilical cord blood when she was profound in 2009. The 42-year-old pronounced it “felt like it was insurance” she couldn’t ignore.

​”What if he did get ill and we didn’t do this?” Vasiljevic said. “Then we would never pardon myself, if I’d had that chance.”

After some investigate online, Vasiljevic enlisted a services of Cord Blood Bank of Canada. She and her father primarily paid $1,100, and a cost of shipping a blood to a lab. Up until this year, a integrate has also paid a yearly storage price of $125 and tax.

Juliana Vasiljevic says she motionless she wanted to store a potentially life-saving branch cells in her son’s umbilical cord blood when she was profound with him. (Makda Ghebreslassie/CBC)

“I felt like it was something reputable,” she said. “It was opposite Canada so how can it be anything other than legitimate?”

When Vasiljevic initial contacted a association in 2009, she pronounced it was purebred with Health Canada. But after an astonishing storage price boost and unsuitable customer-service response done her uneasy, Vasiljevic followed adult with Health Canada.

Vasiljevic reached out to a sovereign health group in Jun and was told a Cord Blood Bank of Canada was legalised in 2012 and 2015, though is not now registered.

‘It was opposite Canada so how can it be anything other than legitimate?’
– Juliana Vasiljevic, former Cord Blood Bank of Canada client

A hunt of Health Canada’s investigation database also showed Vasiljevic that a association was found to be non-compliant with 18 observations discordant to a Safety of Human Cells, Tissues and Organs for Transplantation (CTO) regulations.

The observations in Health Canada’s news included:

• The organisation “did not store or boat cells, tissues or viscera underneath suitable environmental conditions.”
• It used unlawful exam kits for endemic diseases.
• Its annals were false and incomplete.

Health Canada reliable to CBC Toronto that it legalised a Cord Blood Bank of Canada’s lab during 20 Wynford Dr., in 2012 and 2015 and did not re-issue a registration after a second inspection.

When asked by CBC Toronto either non-compliance of a company’s lab compromised clients’ samples, Ellison, by her lawyer, pronounced “absolutely not.” 

Health Canada says it achieved a 2015 investigation of Cord Blood Bank of Canada during 20 Wynford Dr., in Toronto. (CBC)

Agency regulations don’t always apply

Health Canada pronounced a association can continue handling though being purebred given it supposing “written confirmation” that a stored cord blood is usually for “autologous” use, definition it can usually ever be used by a chairman it belongs to.

The regulations enforced by Health Canada usually request to samples dictated for use in other people. 

Through her lawyer, Ellison pronounced her association was “perfectly peaceful not to be means to use a branch cells for other children.” As a result, Ellison pronounced services supposing by Cord Blood Bank of Canada are “completely excusable to Health Canada and ideally legal.” 

Teresa Sniezek says she’s paid for storage of her twin daughters’ cord blood with a bargain she could use for other family members, if needed. (Teresa Sniezek)

CBC Toronto spoke to another Cord Blood Bank of Canada customer in Grande Prairie, Alta., who pronounced she was never told her children’s blood couldn’t be used by other family members.

In fact, that intensity was a offered indicate for Teresa Sniezek when she sealed with a association in 2011.

“She pronounced it’s a compare for this and that,” pronounced Sniezek. “Why would we contend that if we don’t wish me to use it for anyone else?”

In a 2011 email to Sniezek, a association deputy wrote “the advantages of storing cord blood are a hundred-fold. The stems cells are a 100% compare to a baby, a 50% intensity of a ideal compare to a parents, a 25% intensity to siblings, and several degrees to grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.” 

‘She pronounced it’s a compare for this and that. Why would we contend that if we don’t wish me to use it for anyone else?’
– Teresa Sniezek, customer of Cord Blood Bank of Canada

Sniezek pronounced she’s always paid for storage with a bargain that she could use her twin daughters’ cord blood if another family member indispensable it.

For confidentiality reasons, Ellison would not tell CBC Toronto either Sniezek was directly told about a change in a Cord Blood Bank of Canada’s use policy. But Ellison pronounced all clients were sensitive around a company’s website. 

CBC Toronto could not find the presentation anywhere on a company’s site as of Aug. 1.

Like Vasiljevic, Sniezek became endangered about her children’s cord blood after seeing a remuneration issue. In June, Sniezek satisfied she had been overcharged on her annual $125 storage remuneration and reached out for an reason by phone, email and Facebook.

She didn’t hear behind until a month after — after CBC Toronto contacted Cord Blood Bank of Canada with both clients’ concerns.

Sniezek pronounced Ellison phoned her, observant she would reinstate a exaggerate this time, though a annual storage cost would be aloft subsequent year. Sniezek also pronounced Ellison positive her she was “actually a chairman who helped Health Canada form this inspection-regulation routine for cord blood.”

Ellison pronounced she didn’t tell Sniezek she was “the person,” though instead pronounced “she and other stakeholders were asked to criticism on and yield submit into a arrangement of a regulations ruling cord blood banking.” 

Ellison pronounced “her endless knowledge in cord blood banking was concurred by Health Canada.” 

Cancelling an account

After primarily job Cord Blood Bank of Canada in May about billing, Vasiljevic pronounced Ellison called her behind in June, after receiving a call from Halton police.

Vasiljevic pronounced she done it transparent she wanted to cancel her account, seeking for a termination in writing, along with assurances of what would occur to her samples.

Earlier this month, Vasiljevic perceived a minute from a association observant her criticism has been closed, though it done no discuss of what would occur to her son’s cord blood.

In a minute to CBC Toronto, Ellison’s counsel pronounced Vasiljevic competence not have been told, though given she stopped payment, her son’s cord blood will be rejected by “a association employed by [Cord Blood Bank of Canada] to dispose of a medical waste.”

Where is a cord blood bank now?

Sniezek’s annals uncover she sent her daughters’ samples to a Health Canada-inspected Wynford address.

CBC Toronto spoke to a skill manager during 20 Wynford Dr., who reliable Cord Blood Bank of Canada leased space in a medical building from 2003 until May of this year. The space was used to “house specimens,” a skill manager said, though would not criticism on because a association left a building.

CBC Toronto spoke with an worker during Cord Blood Bank of Canada’s bureau during 688 Coxwell Ave., though could not endorse either a association has a lab during this location. (CBC)

Two other Greater Toronto Area addresses are now compared with Cord Blood Bank of Canada. CBC Toronto visited both locations: 7030 Woodbine Ave. in Markham, Ont., is a practical office, and a other is in a medical bureau building during 688 Coxwell Ave.

CBC Toronto could not endorse either a association has a lab trickery during a Coxwell address, though an worker answered a doorway to an bureau space during a building.

When asked about a plcae of a lab and her clients’ cord blood samples, Ellison pronounced “from an comprehensive confidence perspective,” she would not publicly divulge a plcae of a lab.

What to demeanour for in a cord blood bank

Although sovereign regulations for cord blood don’t request if it’s usually being stored for autologous use, Health Canada says there are other safeguards relatives can demeanour for if they wish to have their child’s cord blood stored.

Cells for Life stores roughly 50,000 cord blood samples for clients during their lab in a groundwork of Toronto General Hospital. (CBC)

In an email, Health Canada remarkable that Canadian cord blood banks “can achieve accreditation from creditable organizations such as a Foundation for Accreditation of Cell Therapies and a American Association of Blood Banks.”

CBC Toronto visited a cord blood bank during Toronto General Hospital — Cells for Life — with both those accreditations, as good as a registration with Health Canada.

Jane Virro, chair of a house of Cells for Life, says she’s listened of Cord Blood Bank of Canada though doesn’t know who owns it or where a association is located. (CBC)

“I unequivocally don’t know anything about a company,” pronounced a company’s chair, Jane Virro, told CBC Toronto. “I don’t know who a owners are; we don’t know where it’s located.”

Sniezek pronounced Cells for Life told her a same thing when she reached out to a bank to see if she could send her daughters’ blood there.

Nicole Brockbank can be reached during 416-205-6911 or during nicole.brockbank@cbc.ca.

Article source: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/cord-blood-concerns-health-canada-inspection-1.4232471?cmp=rss