BOC Healthcare Builds HFEA Accreditation

Medical gases supplier BOC Healthcare has been accredited by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) for the storage of human reproductive cells (gametes) at its Cryobank facility. This adds to BOC's existing HTA (Human Tissue Authority) accreditation.

The demand for biological cryopreservation for fertility purposes is set to continue growing,  partly due to medical reasons and partly in response to the rising number of women in their 30s and 40s who want their eggs to be frozen and stored securely for possible use in the future. As demand for the cryopreservation of eggs increases this adds pressure on the availability of secure cryostorage facilities. The BOC Cryobank  high security facility  utilises ultra-low temperature, vapour phase, freezers. Flexible storage solutions are available to fertility clinics and  in addition, disaster recovery insurance policies can be provided, allowing clinics to use BOC as their off-site contingency storage facility.

Announcing the new licence, Mike Toole, Cryobank Business Manager for BOC Healthcare said: "Our state-of-the-art Cryobank facility provides peace of mind for our customers who require secure off-site storage of irreplaceable samples. Flexibility is key to our offer; with solutions ranging from the storage of an individual patient's samples to full disaster recovery plans."