Boyd “Rainmaker” Melson, Professional Athlete and Advocate for Spinal Cord Injury Treatment, signs o

Provia Labs’ Store-A-Tooth, a stem cell bank specializing in dental stem cell preservation, announces the appointment of Boyd Melson, world-class athlete and strong advocate for spinal cord injury research, to their Advisory Board.

Lexington, MA (September 16, 2013):

Provia Laboratories announces the addition of Boyd “Rainmaker” Melson to its growing Advisory Board. Melson brings his big heart and passion for improving the lives of those dealing with spinal cord injury to the team of dedicated advisors who help shape Provia’s mission and services.

Melson is a gifted professional boxer who donates all of the money that he earns in the ring to spinal cord injury research. His advocacy efforts have been profiled on Emmy Award winning HBO series Real Sports, ESPN.com, Sports Illustrated and Yahoo. He is a founder of the organization Team Fight to Walk (www.teamfighttowalk.com), which through professional boxers and other athletes raises money for JustADollarPlease (www.justadollarplease.org), which supports efforts to bring clinical trials of adult stem cell treatments for spinal cord injury to the United States. “In the United States alone, where a spinal cord injury occurs every 43 minutes, there are 300,000 people living with the tragic after-effects”, said Melson. “Of those, 40,000 are US Armed Forces Veterans. The exploding field of regenerative medicine holds great promise for the treatment of these injuries. My dearest friend in this world, Christan, who is the inspiration behind my passion for all things relating to spinal cord injury treatment, lives every day with the challenges resulting from a spinal cord injury. I have experienced firsthand, in her case, how adult stem cells can improve the quality of life. I live to help Christan and others like her.” Boyd continues, “I am really pumped about being an Advisor to Store-A-Tooth, whose mission is to help the world prepare for a future where adult stem cells have changed medicine as we know it. Everyone should be banking their cells.” “We are thrilled to have Boyd on our Advisory Board,” said Provia Labs CEO Howard Greenman. He brings a boundless passion and devotion to advancing the public’s awareness of the potential of adult stem cells and regenerative medical treatment.“ His heartfelt insights about the effects of accidents like spinal cord injury, and his advocacy for the needs of people living with the chronic condition, are a constant inspiration to us all here at Provia Labs.” As an amateur boxer, Melson won the 48th World Military Boxing Championship gold medal in the 69 kg. weight-class, and is a four-time All US Army champion, three-time US Armed Forces champion and three-time NCBA All-American boxer. He won gold medals at the All Army Boxing Championships twice and at the Armed Forces Boxing Championships twice. He won a bronze medal at the 2005 US Amateur Boxing Championships, and a silver medal at the 2006 U.S. National Championships. Melson turned professional in 2010, in order to raise money for spinal cord injury research. He serves as an Army Reserves Captain in the 1st Mobilization Support Group out of Fort Totten in Queens, NY. He is a Manhattan, NY resident. Check www.store-a-tooth.com to see where Boyd will be speaking next on behalf of spinal cord injury treatment at Provia-sponsored events. About Provia Laboratories, LLC Headquartered in Littleton, MA, Provia Laboratories, LLC is a healthcare services company specializing in high-quality bio-banking (the collection, transport, processing and cryogenic storage of biological specimens). Provia Labs offers the Proviasette™ product range for use in bio-banking environments to improve sample logistics, security and quality. The company manages and promotes its own bio-bank for a dental stem cell banking service, Store-A-Tooth™, which gives families the option to store stem cells to protect their children’s future health and take advantage of advances in stem cell therapies. Provia advises industrial, academic and governmental clients on matters related to the preservation of biological specimens for research and clinical use. Provia Labs is a member of ISBER, the International Society for Biological and Environmental Repositories, as well as ESBB, the European, Middle Eastern & African Society for Bio-preservation & Bio-banking. For further information about Proviasette™, please call Provia Labs at +1 (781) 652-4815, email pminor@provialabs.com, or visit http://www.proviasette.com.