By Anthony Oliva, PhD
Updated October 08, 2026
Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are the multipotent cells that American Cell Technology (ACT) isolates, multiplies and banks, and in an adult they are collected from one of two tissues: adipose (fat) tissue or bone marrow. The third source people hear about is the umbilical cord, which is collected at birth and only at birth.
Which stem cell sources can an adult actually use?
Fat and marrow are both there for as long as you are, and either can be drawn in a physician’s office whenever you decide to. Cord is different. It is collected in the minutes after birth, which makes it the only one with a deadline, and that deadline has passed for anyone reading this.
| Source | How it is collected | Anesthesia | When it can be collected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adipose (fat) tissue | Small liposuction in a physician’s office | Local | At any age* |
| Bone marrow | Needle aspiration from the hip bone | Local or sedation, depending on the practice | At any age* |
| Umbilical cord | At birth | Not applicable | Birth only |
*Age is not a limit on either adult source, though collection in children is more involved and is typically done under general anesthesia rather than local anesthesia.
Newborn banking is a decision you may end up making for someone close to you. If a child, a grandchild, a niece or a nephew is on the way, that is VitalCells, our newborn banking brand.
What happens during an adipose collection?
Your physician numbs a small area and draws about a tablespoon of fat. Because the anesthetic is local, you stay awake throughout.
The draw itself takes fifteen minutes, the whole appointment is under an hour, and you are free to get back to your day afterwards.
The sample usually comes from the lower back and flank rather than the abdomen or the thigh, because that area carries more blood supply.
The adult banking service page walks through the process in full, including the bloodwork that has to be done beforehand.
What happens during a bone marrow collection?
Marrow is aspirated from the iliac crest, which is the ridge you can feel at the top of your hip, and a needle is passed into the bone to draw the marrow out. Some practices do this under local anesthetic and others use sedation, and that decision belongs to the physician performing it rather than to the bank.
ACT banks from bone marrow as well as from fat.
How many stem cells does each tissue hold?
This is where the two separate, and the gap is not small. Fat yields somewhere between 500 and 2,500 times more harvestable stem cells than bone marrow does (Fraser 2006; Casteilla 2011), and the range is wide because different studies count different cell populations.
Cell quality matters too, and the short version is that your adipose tissue holds young cells. In ACT’s own telomere study, one of the longest telomeres in the entire study came from an 88-year-old’s adipose-derived cells.
Those figures describe what the tissues hold in general rather than predicting what your own sample will yield, which is why the count is confirmed on your cells before anything is frozen.
What makes fat the easier collection
It takes fifteen minutes under local anesthetic, and the cells themselves hold up better with age. That is what the telomere findings above help illustrate: in ACT’s own study, one of the longest telomeres came from an 88-year-old’s adipose-derived cells. Every vial ACT banks holds 10 million live cells, counted and confirmed before freezing.
Your physician may still recommend bone marrow for reasons specific to you, and that conversation is theirs rather than ours.
What happens to the sample after it leaves the office?
ACT receives the sample at its own laboratory, which is FDA registered and inspected and operates under current Good Tissue Practice. Processing takes place in ISO 7-classified cleanrooms using ISO 5-classified cabinets.
There, the mesenchymal stem cells are isolated from the tissue and multiplied in culture. Before anything is frozen, the cells are counted and their viability is confirmed, so what goes into storage is a documented quantity rather than an estimate. They are cryopreserved in vials of 10 million live cells and held at minus 196 degrees Celsius. The whole process takes about six weeks.
None of it happens on the day of collection. How the cells are stored and what keeps them viable covers the storage side properly.
What happens next
The collection is booked with your physician, and ACT handles everything from the moment the sample reaches the laboratory.
If you are looking for a physician who works with ACT for stem cell banking, we can help you find one.
Frequently asked questions
Is there any recovery time?
Most people resume normal activities the same day. Your physician performs the collection and is the right person to ask about what to expect afterwards.
What if the sample does not work?
ACT processes a new sample at no additional cost if the cells do not grow out, if the sample is contaminated, or if it fails quality control testing. With an adult collection, another sample can be taken, which is not the case with a newborn.
Does my age affect whether this is worth doing?
Less than most people assume. Stem cell banking myths, and what is actually true covers what the telomere data shows.
What does it cost?
Two parties charge separately, your physician for the collection and American Cell Technology for stem cell processing, and what the processing fee covers, and what is billed separately sets out both sides.
References
Fraser JK, Wulur I, Alfonso Z, Hedrick MH. Fat tissue: an underappreciated source of stem cells for biotechnology. Trends in Biotechnology. 2006;24(4):150 to 154. doi:10.1016/j.tibtech.2006.01.010
Casteilla L, Planat-Benard V, Laharrague P, Cousin B. Adipose-derived stromal cells: their identity and uses in clinical trials, an update. World Journal of Stem Cells. 2011;3(4):25 to 33. doi:10.4252/wjsc.v3.i4.25
Schema to implement: Article or MedicalWebPage, plus FAQPage on the questions block.
This blog is for educational purposes only. American Cell Technology does not provide medical advice or make claims. Please consult your physician with any medical questions.
