Allograft Safety

Since our inception in 1987, with over 3 million grafts distributed, MTF maintains an unrivaled safety record. Under the guidance of our Board of Directors and Medical Board of Trustees, MTF has become the number one tissue bank in the nation. MTF takes every precaution, from recovery through distribution, to ensure safety and we are not bound by anyone other than our surgeons who demand the highest safeguards.

We are aware that the illegal recovery of tissues at a small number of funeral homes in the New York area has brought disgrace upon the individuals and companies involved. The investigation is focused on Biomedical Tissue Services, Ltd., a for-profit tissue recovery company, which recovered tissues from at least six New York area funeral homes without donor approval.

MTF finds the practices of Biomedical Tissue Services, Ltd. to be reprehensible. We believe that the highest level of integrity is paramount in our mission, and safety and quality without compromise are at the heart of everything we do. MTF wishes to stress that we have never worked with Biomedical Tissue Services, Ltd. and we do not work with any for-profit tissue recovery agencies.

The following principles govern all our recovery practices:

• MTF’s philosophy is that non-profit control of recovery and distribution are at the heart of ensuring ethical stewardship of the donated gift.
  
• MTF does not work with any for-profit tissue recovery agencies.
  
• MTF is guided in all aspects of our mission by our Board of Directors and Medical Board of Trustees, not shareholders.
  
• MTF’s donor safety criteria has never been surpassed by any tissue bank.
• MTF rejects more donors every year than any other tissue bank as the tissues of these donors unfortunately fail to meet our strict acceptance criteria.
  
• MTF meets and exceeds the standards and regulations of the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB) and the FDA.
  
• MTF employs the latest technologies (such as Nucleic Acid Testing) to conduct serological tests on all donors.
• MTF employs an Audit Team whose sole purpose is to audit, on a routine basis, the tissue recovery organizations that MTF partners with to ensure compliance with our strict standards and protocols.
  

Sincerely,