Aetna Awards $25,000 Grant to Coriell Institute.Business Editors/Health/Medical Writers CAMDEN Camden, borough, Greater London, England Camden, inner borough (1991 pop. 170,500) of Greater London, SE England. Within the borough, residential Hampstead is popular with writers and artists. , N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 11, 2004 Aetna (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange : AET AET Aetna, Inc. AET After Extra Time AET Actual Evapotranspiration AET Alliance for Environmental Technology AET Alpha-Ethyltryptamine AET Applied Extrusion Technologies, Inc. ) and the Aetna Foundation have awarded a $25,000 grant to the Coriell Institute for Medical Research, a Camden, N.J.-based research institute known internationally for its innovations in cell culture technology. The Aetna grant will help Coriell expand its cord blood cord blood n. Blood present in the umbilical vessels at the time of delivery. collection and bank program, which has significantly improved treatment options for patients with blood disorders blood disorders, n.pl hematologic dyscrasias that affect the component cells and plasma elements of the blood. They are generally divided into two broad groups: those in which an increase in bulk occurs (e.g. , while also providing valuable stem cells stem cells, unspecialized human or animal cells that can produce mature specialized body cells and at the same time replicate themselves. Embryonic stem cells are derived from a blastocyst (the blastula typical of placental mammals; see embryo), which is very young for research. Cord blood, which is baby's blood that remains in the umbilical cord umbilical cord (ŭmbĭl`ĭkəl), cordlike structure about 22 in. (56 cm) long in the pregnant human female, extending from the abdominal wall of the fetus to the placenta. and placenta after birth, is often used as an alternative to bone marrow. Coriell will develop a cord blood resource with at least 30 percent of the blood coming from ethnic minority groups. Coriell is working with area hospitals to develop educational materials in both English and Spanish for expectant mothers. "For more than 50 years, the Coriell Institute has conducted valuable research aimed at discovering the causes of cancer and other genetic diseases," says Patricia Mueller, M.D., medical director for Aetna's Mid-Atlantic Region. "As we learn more, the demand for cord blood, and the range of diseases that can be treated with it, will increase dramatically. Aetna is proud to participate in these efforts." By expanding cord blood collection from people of diverse ethnicity, Coriell hopes to gather more stem cells for patients and research, helping to save the lives of people with leukemia, lymphoma, aplastic anemia aplastic anemia or anemia of bone-marrow failure Inadequate blood-cell formation by bone marrow. Pancytopenia is the lack of all blood-cell types (erythrocytes, leukocytes, and platelets), but any combination may be missing. and similar blood-based diseases. The program also will greatly increase the potential for donor matches from among ethnically diverse populations. "We are deeply grateful for this funding," said David Beck, Ph.D., president and chief executive officer for Coriell. "It is essential to the development of this powerful new technology that it be recognized and supported by the insurance industry, especially by companies of the size and importance of Aetna." Aetna is one of the nation's leading providers of health care, dental, pharmacy, group life, disability and long-term care benefits, serving approximately 13.0 million medical members, 10.9 million dental members, 7.4 million pharmacy members and 12.3 million group insurance customers, as of December 31, 2003. The company has expansive nationwide networks of more than 600,000 health care services providers, including over 362,000 primary care and specialist physicians and 3,626 hospitals. For more information about Aetna, please visit the company's web site at www.aetna.com. |
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