The immune system is an incredible force. At this moment, there are billions of cells in your body dedicated to helping you battle diseases and heal from infections.

However, these cells do not last forever. With age, your immune cells begin to slowly deteriorate over time and your body is no longer able to protect itself against new and dangerous threats. Without the ability to generate new immune cells, you become more susceptible to certain life threatening diseases that can leave you defenseless.

Immune cell banking can help better prepare you for the future. Through cryopreservation, you are able to take your healthy immune cells and effectively “archive” them for future use. Taking this proactive approach while you are younger, between the ages of 18 and 60, lets you create a future resource for immune intervention that otherwise would never be available. 

Storing Your Immune Cells

Think of banking your immune cells as an insurance policy for your future health. In an extraction process that is similar to a regular blood draw, your immune cells are separated using proprietary cell sorting technology and then frozen and kept viable in cryostorage. This allows your high-value cells to be stored indefinitely until the exact moment you require them. 

Using Your Immune Cells 

Immunotherapy, or therapies that strengthen the power of a patient’s immune system, have become an exciting new frontier in the field of cancer research. While the “traditional pillars” of cancer treatment are still surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy, the rapid development of emerging cell therapies such as CAR T-cell and CAR NK-cell have continued to revolutionize how researchers are approaching these diseases. 

What is CAR T-cell Therapy?

CAR T-cell therapy relies on the use of a patients’ own T-cells — white blood cells that determine the body’s immune response. Once the cells are extracted from the patient and separated, they are then genetically engineered to produce receptors on their surface called chimeric antigen receptors (CARs). These receptors give T-cells the ability to specifically target and attach themselves to certain tumor cells. The modified T-cells are multiplied and grown and then are frozen for future use. When they are eventually needed, they are thawed and infused back into the patient’s bloodstream where they begin to multiply. This equips the patient with cells that are engineered to “seek and destroy” their specific tumor. CAR T-cells can remain in the body for several months after the initial infusion and have even resulted in some long-term remissions.

What is CAR NK-cell Therapy?

CAR T-cell therapy is not the only cancer immunotherapy that has been gaining traction lately, another therapy known CAR Natural Killer Cell (CAR NK cell) has emerged in clinical trials. Much like their T-cell counterpart, NK cells kill infected cells in the body. They are particularly known for their ability to kill blood cancer and tumor cells that are in their early stages. 

Unlike T-cells, which are part of the adaptive immune system that allows them to recognize very specific threats, NK cells are part of the innate immune system that responds to anything that it categorizes as a foreign threat. And unlike T-cells, this type of broad response means that NK-cells can actually come from other donors instead of just the patient’s own body. Meaning, patients can potentially store their NK-cells to use for themselves as well as for friends and family.  

The Future of Immune Cell Banking

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already approved CAR T-cell treatments for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and certain forms of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), prevalent in young adult patients. Both interventions are currently approved as a second line of therapy, used after a patient has not responded to at least two different treatments. In addition, there are over 1,000 registered clinical trials currently going on worldwide to monitor CAR T- cell therapy’s effect on other diseases such as fibrotic liver disease, atherosclerosis, and even diabetes. Combine that with the addition of promising new immunotherapies like CAR NK-cell currently undergoing clinical trials and the market for immune cell banking seems poised to continue growing.

How HealthBanks Can Help

Since HealthBanks’ inception in 2001, we have grown into one of the world’s leading private and public cell banking organizations. In 2019, we became the first cryobank network to offer immune cell banking and storage for future use in immunotherapies. With the emerging success of CAR T-cell therapies as a viable cancer treatment, we expanded our ever-evolving suite of cryopreservation solutions to meet growing demand. HealthBanks is proud to use the best automated technology and smart robotic storage solutions to preserve your precious cells. No other private cell banks in the US uses the same caliber of technology to protect your cells.

Using the experience and knowledge of our executive team, HealthBanks is fulfilling its mission to make the benefits of cell and gene therapies accessible to everyone.

Bank Your Immune Cells Today 

Healthbanks offers comprehensive immune cell banking options. Our state-of-the-art bioprocessing technology and world class customer service allows us to provide the best immune cell banking experience in the industry. To learn more about our services and technologies and how you can begin investing in your future health today, visit our website healthbanks.us.