Ukrainian Cord Blood Banks Resolute
in Protecting Personnel and Facilities

“I hope you never have to experience anything like this in your lives.”  So comes a message from a Ukrainian cord blood bank spokesperson to colleagues around the world.

Two CBA-member banks are in the Ukraine capital city, Kyiv. Personnel at both are in peril. Some have evacuated. Some are trying to find routes to safety. Some are standing their ground, sheltering themselves and protecting their facilities.

“We have now witnessed 12 days of a vile, cowardly, unprovoked attack on our county,” said Alexiy Bryzhko, chief executive officer for Hemafund, a family bank in Kyiv. “Ukraine is fighting for its future, and for the freedom and the future of Europe and the world.”

A representative of the Institute of Cell Therapy, a hybrid family and public bank in Kyiv, reports that staff there are “doing everything possible in these terrible times to maintain the storage of our cryopreserved biomaterial.”

Nearly two weeks into the Russian invasion of Ukraine, more than 2 million people have fled the beseiged country, according to the United Nations refugee agency. At least half of them are children.

Leaders of the two banks were asked about the escalating dangers to their personnel, the status of their facilities, opinions about the crisis, and anything that their colleagues across the world can do. Their answers are reported below.

Lives Destroyed

“The Hemafund group employs more than 150 highly qualified specialists, most of them women with families and children,” said bank spokesperson Yaroslav Issakov who goes by the initials “YR.” “The war has destroyed their lives and stolen their children’s peace.”

Since the crisis began, the bank management has been working around the clock to find ways to get the bank’s families to safety and to secure deposits stored. “Today, all our employees’ families, except for the family of the chief maintenance officer who found himself in occupied territory, have been evacuated. We are keeping in touch with him and ready to evacuate him as soon as possible,” Yaroslav said.

“The company is now at a standstill. Our security has been reinforced, and personnel whom we can protect are housed in the most secure possible locations. Employees not involved in emergency activities have been moved to the west of the country and abroad where possible, to Poland, Hungary and Germany.

“All men of combat-ready age have voluntarily signed up for the Territorial Defense Force. Our morale is high. There is a waiting list to join the territorial defense since the number of volunteers is far larger than can be enlisted,” he said.

“Yesterday morning our bank’s CEO sent a video. Workers who refused to leave the lab continued to process samples! But the invading forces are now near at hand, and cannonade can be heard a few miles from the bank. There are two prongs of attack heading directly toward us."

Processing Continues

The spokesperson for the Institute of Cell Therapy reported that “As of now, our facility in Kyiv is functioning without changes. Our cryostorage is strategically located on the base of the maternity clinic. Electricity is provided by a separate line, and it is independent. We have a reserve of nitrogen for four months.

“We also have 24-hour security and video monitoring. Our staff is doing everything possible to continue delivering and processing material by regular regimen. Some clients are trying to take their stored biomaterial abroad, and we help in this process as well,” she said.

ICT Executive Director Andrii Makhinya relayed through a staff member that “despite all these terrible conditions the Institute of Cell Therapy is doing everything possible to keep functioning and the stored samples safe.”

Predatory Evil

Ask for his observation about the defense of Ukraine, Yaroslav said that “Disastrously, we ignored and excused a predatory evil for many years as Chechnya, Moldova, Georgia and Syria were assaulted – not to mention the support of other terrorist outrages around the world. As a result, the enemy has come to believe it can launch with impunity the bloodiest and most massive invasion since World War II.

“Now, finally too late, the world understands the danger and has begun to unite. We are seeing unprecedented levels of assistance offered to Ukraine. Russia can and will send more and more troops, and they continue to mercilessly bombard our towns with no heed for civilian casualties,” he said.

A Way To Help

Asked how those in the cord blood community might respond to the humanitarian crisis, Yaroslav answered “financial support.”

“We have initiated the Bank of Life Charitable Fund and are using it for targeted assistance for the fleeing families of our colleagues, as well as to provide for those who have remained in Ukraine and are actively involved in the defense of our land,” he said.

“Now we desperately need donations from our professional friends and collaborators. We call on you in our deepest need. We beg you, do not desert us now.”

He said that Euro and U.S. dollar contributions can be wired to:

   Beneficiary:  Bank of Life Charitable Fund
   Account #: UA233005280000026009455044153
   Beneficiary’s Bank: OTP BANK JSC
   SWIFT code: OTPVUAUK

“We are all doing our utmost to save our families and friends, to support our heroic armed forces, and save our country. Ukraine has already won, but the enemy is many. Woefully more defenders’ lives will be lost, and more innocent civilians killed,” he said.