SST capabilities and protocols

Our Standby Procedures

How it works

Standby dispatch

Our Standby teams are on call 24/7 to dispatch to you and start the cryopreservation process. After our teams are notified that you are or will soon be legally dead our dispatch procedures will begin. In the images you can see the drive times of the standby team in Berlin and Amsterdam. Each ring represents what the team can reach in an additional 2 hours.

01.

Notification

In most cases of death there is forewarning, in which case you or a loved one can notify us so that a standby team can dispatch to you ahead of your pronouncement. If you pass away suddenly there are several ways we can be notified including your member bracelet, patient advance directive, next of kin, or our emergency app.

02.

Dispatch

Based on your location it will be determined which Standby can reach you faster (there is a team in Berlin, Amsterdam via a partner, and soon in Zurich). Then it will be determined which mode of transport (ambulance or plane) will reach you faster. If you are in Western Europe at the time of your passing, the team will most likely dispatch to you in one of our specially equipped ambulances. If you were to die outside of Europe, a team and all the necessary cryoprotection equipment would be dispatched to you by plane.

03.

Local teams

While a standby team is dispatching, our team at Tomorrow will, whenever possible, coordinate with local resources. This could mean informing medical professionals at the hospital where you were pronounced dead about how to slow degradation processes (placing you in an ice water mixture, performing cardiopulmonary support, etc.). Additionally, we plan to build up a network of teams in Europe who could begin cool-down procedures while the professional standby team is on its way to you.
Cryoprotection begins

Initial cool down

Our standby team will reach you with all medical equipment needed to perform full-body cryoprotection on site. Exact cryoprotection procedures will vary depending on the circumstances of each individual patient. The following procedure description is based on a typical cryoprotection case. Initial cool down starts by placing the patient in an ice water mixture. The patient is then given a range of medications that reduce metabolic load and protect tissues and cells. Cardiopulmonary support is also used to circulate blood and the patient receives oxygen through intubation to keep the body in a stable condition.
Surgical part

Perfusion

After initial cooling the perfusion of low concentration cryoprotectants begins through aortic cannulation. Perfusion and continued cool down is done with a heart lung machine. As the patient continues to cool, stronger concentrations of cryoprotectant solutions are perfused until the concentration is high enough for vitrification. The final temperature reached during cryoprotection is -76°C (dry ice temperature). At this point the perfusion is stopped and the focus becomes temperature maintenance.
Part 1: Membership
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Payment Duration
Paid from the time you sign up until you are cryopreserved
Cost
25€ per month
Discounts
Discounts available for family sign ups and Tomorrow
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CALCULATE YOUR PLAN
Part 2: Funding for Standby & Storage
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Procedure completion

Transport

Next the team needs to transport you to a long-term care (storage) facility. If the facility is within reasonable driving distance, then you will be transported in the ambulance where cryoprotection was performed. If reaching the facility requires plane transport then the team will pack you with dry ice and insulation to maintain -76°C until the facility is reached. At the long-term care facility you will be further cooled down to -196°C before you are placed in a dewar filled with liquid nitrogen to maintain your temperature indefinitely. Cooling from -76°C to -196°C usually takes a few weeks, because lowering the temperature too quickly can cause significant thermal stress. You will then remain in this dewar with a regular resupply of liquid nitrogen until medical technology has advanced enough to treat you.