Sparks Brain Preservation
A Non-profit Organization
Thank you so much for considering brain preservation services with our organization. We believe that signing up for brain preservation is a courageous and altruistic decision. Most importantly, it gives the person being preserved a potential chance at revival in the future. It also helps advance neuroscience, reduces social stigma, and encourages broader thinking about the long-term survival and flourishing of humanity.
Paperwork can be completed via web form or by downloading the PDF and returning it by email or mail. Please Contact Us with any questions.
Use these forms to sign yourself up for preservation. There is no initial or annual cost to be signed up.
Use these forms if you are working with us to preserve a loved one.
This is our standard and best procedure for preserving the structure of the brain. Our staff performs the procedure in one of three locations:
The cost of the procedure is heavily dependent on the location of legal death, which affects how far our staff need to travel in order to perform it and how much the third-party services will cost. Note that long-term members receive 33% off all prices. Prices are shown as: Long-term member price (Non-member or new-member price).
Legal Death in Our Visitor Room: $2000 ($3000 for non-members or new members) This includes cases where Medical Aid in Dying is administered by independent physicians in our Visitor Room. For Research Program participants, there is no cost.
Driving Distance:
Oregon - Within 75 miles of Salem: $2800 ($4200 for non-members or new members)
Oregon - Within 150 miles of Salem: $3500 ($5250)
Oregon - Elsewhere in the state: $6200 ($9300)
Washington - Within 150 miles of Salem: $4100 ($6150)
Washington - Seattle Area (including Bellingham): $5500 ($8250)
Washington - Elsewhere in the state: $6200 ($9300)
Flying distance:
Pacific Time Zone: $11,600 ($17,400)
Mountain Time Zone: $12,300 ($18,450)
Central Time Zone and Alaska: $13,000 ($19,500)
Eastern Time Zone and Hawaii: $13,600 ($20,400)
These prices include all transportation and cremation of the remaining body. Standby services, if desired, are priced separately, but these are not required or applicable to every situation.
If our staff cannot reach you in time, or you prefer this method, then the whole body can be shipped to our facility via air transport. You or your family will need to pay for the services of a local funeral director to arrange shipment and obtain required documentation, such as the transfer permit and death certificate.
Our fee: $2800 ($4200 for non-members)
This covers transportation from the Portland airport to our facility, preservation of the brain, cremation of the rest of the body, and long-term storage. For Research Program participants, this fee is waived.
For more information about this option, see Body Transport.
For individuals anywhere in the world, local professionals (such as pathologists or pathology assistants) can perform the brain removal and preservation procedure. After enough time for adequate initial fixation (around 4 weeks), the preserved brain can be shipped to our facility. Here is the process:
For more information about this option, see Third-Party Preservation.
We offer cryopreservation (liquid nitrogen storage) only as a last resort when our standard aldehyde preservation cannot be performed. This typically occurs when a body is straight frozen before this could be prevented. Even though it is more expensive due to required maintenance costs, we consider this lower quality than our standard preservation method.
$5000 for cryopreservation only of the brain only ($7500 for non-members)
$15,000 for cryopreservation only of the entire head ($22,500 for non-members)
Note: These prices cover only the cryopreservation service at our facility. Any shipping costs or initial procedures by funeral directors are additional.
How can payment be made?
We accept payment via check or life insurance assignment. Payment can be made before or after services are performed (except for cryopreservation, which requires advance payment).
Is paid membership required to enroll for services?
No, a paid membership is not required to sign up. You can sign up for brain preservation with no upfront costs. From our perspective, signing up for preservation is clearly better than nothing and it is recommended if you do not have any funds available to pay for membership right now. It also may be the best option if you intend on using one of our no-cost options, such as remote brain preservation by a third party professional, and you do not have the money available right now to pay for the membership costs.
However, if you do have the available money right now, and are considering any of our paid service options, we believe that becoming a paying member will benefit both you and our organization. It will benefit you because paying members receive 33% off all services after 2 years and because membership fees accumulate as service credits. See Membership for more.
Another possible option is to sign the paperwork for preservation now and then consider becoming a paying member in the future if you later do have enough money for this.
Can I use life insurance to pay for preservation?
Yes. This is a common way to cover preservation costs. You can take out a life insurance policy and name Sparks Brain Preservation as the beneficiary. As long as the policy has sufficient coverage, the payout can be used to fund your preservation.
You are free to use any life insurance provider of your choice. Some of our members have worked with Rudi Hoffman, CFP, who has specialized in life insurance for cryonics for many years. His website is rudihoffman.com, and you are welcome to reach out to him directly. We do not receive any compensation for referrals.
We recommend overfunding your policy to provide a buffer against inflation and an unexpectedly long period of Standby, if this is a service that you desire. By default, any excess funds will be placed into our Patient Care Trust, which is dedicated solely to long-term storage and care. You may also stipulate that any surplus funds be directed elsewhere, such as to our research or to your family or other beneficiaries.
If you would like help setting up a life insurance policy or have any questions about how this works, please Contact Us.
What happens during the preservation procedure?
In ideal cases, we perfuse aldehyde-based solutions through the brain’s blood vessels to stabilize all proteins and prevent decay. We then carefully remove the patient’s brain and part of the cervical spinal cord, using the techniques we have developed over hundreds of cases to minimize damage. The patient’s brain is then stored indefinitely in preservative fluid at refrigerator temperature in our patient vault. See Our Preservation Approach.
How quickly do you need to reach me after legal death?
The sooner the better. Ideally, we begin the procedure within minutes. Our current research suggests we can achieve potentially sufficient structural preservation up to 24-48 hours after legal death, especially if the body is kept cool. Beyond 48 hours, the likelihood of successful preservation is expected to be lower. However, even this timeline is not well established, and there is a significant amount of variability between cases for unknown reasons. The exact time window for successful perfusion and for brain cell structure to break down is poorly understood. In our opinion, people (or AI models) who make confident claims about this topic usually do not know what they are talking about. The science simply is not yet well established.
Do fees need to be paid prior to service?
No, not in most cases. The only exception is the case of cryopreservation services, where payment does need to be made prior to storage in liquid nitrogen.
What if I cannot afford the full preservation fee?
Please contact us to discuss your situation. We may be able to reduce the fee or help you find alternative options in some circumstances based on demonstrated financial need. Our goal is for preservation to be accessible to as many people as possible.
Do you provide standby services?
Yes. Standby services are certainly not required, but are available for an additional fee. See our Standby page for details.
Do you preserve pets?
Yes. See our Pet Preservation page for details.
What if I have a unique circumstance that does not fit the standard protocol?
Every preservation case is different, and exceptions are common. Our goal is to make high-quality brain preservation accessible to as many people as possible. If the standard protocol does not fit your situation, we will work with you to find creative solutions, within the limits of the services we can provide. Please Contact Us to discuss your particular situation.