• Transplant Society Congress report: Muslims accept organ donations but reluctant to donate (17 Aug. 2010)
• Five WHO experts linked with vaccine producers (13 Aug. 2010)
• H1N1 in post-pandemic period (WHO Director-General's statement; 10 Aug. 2010)
• Tainted-blood compensation incomplete as July 1^st deadline nears (29 June 2010)
• European Commission: Survey on European attitudes on blood donation & transfusion (June 2010)
• World Blood Donor Day - June 14, 2010
  • Barcelona's host website
• More Landis revelations on blood doping in cycling (20 May 2010)
• Global shift towards increased biovigilance (CMAJ, 26 Feb. 2010)
• Olympics: To catch a cheating athlete
  • Olympic doping lab world's most sophisticated (10 Feb. 2010)
  • Macdougall IC, Rossert J, Casadevall N, Stead RB, Duliege AM, Froissart M, Eckardt KU. A peptide-based erythropoietin-receptor agonist for pure red-cell aplasia. N Engl J Med. 2009 Nov 5;361(19):1848–55.
  • IOC chief Rogge not naive about autologous blood doping (25 Feb. 2010)
• Reading list: Transfusion medicine in developing countries (TraQ clearinghouse)

USA

• U.S. stem cell research policy
  • U.S. judge rules against Obama’s stem cell policy (23 Aug. 2010)
  • Obama to appeal stem cell ruling (25 Aug. 2010)
• Combat casualty care conference shows promising research returns, including for freeze-dried plasma. (18 Aug. 2010) Background:
  • Nascimento B, Callum J, Rubenfeld G, Neto JB, Lin Y, Rizoli S. Clinical review: fresh frozen plasma in massive bleedings - more questions than answers. Crit Care. 2010;14(1):202. Epub 2010 Jan 28.
    • Daban JL, Clapson P, Ausset S, Deshayes AV, Sailliol A. Freeze dried plasma: a French army specialty. Crit Care. 2010;14(2):412. Epub 2010 Apr 14.
  • Barrow E. Freeze-dried plasma: the trail back to the battlefield. Defense AT&L Magazine,1 Sept. 2006.
• Erie Community Blood Bank battles economy and competition (22 July 2010)
• Scientists develop 'fake' genetically-engineered blood for use on the battlefield (12 July 2010)
• Recommendations on MSM blood donors (HHS Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability)
• FDA fines ARC $16 million for prior failures to meet blood safety laws (FDA, 17 June 2010)
  • 2009 adverse determination letters
  • ARC statement on FDA fines
• Military strives for single global blood database (7 June 2010)
• Mississippi blood center in middle of debate on chronic fatigue syndrome (15 June 2010)
• HHS committee weighs lifting ban on gay blood donors (11 June 2010)
•  ARC labor woes (19 May 2010):
  • Staff cuts at ARC harm blood supply, coalition says
  • Connecticut: Red Cross workers: Phlebotomist firings due to contract tiff (comments are interesting too)
  • Background (labor's perspective): Labor relations at the ARC and its impact on employee and donor safety (by Philip Dine)
• Federal agents probe Army's use of Factor VII (Novoseven^®) on wounded troops (research methods & financial arrangements rumored to be investigated) (16 May 2010)
• Rapid cost increases for blood products cause clinical pathology labs to seek solutions (13 May 2010)
• NY: Funding for key maternal program pulled (10 May 2010)

• Colorado: FDA sends warning letter to Children's Hospital

  • FDA warning letter

• Nevada: State approves first EMS to transport patients being transfused

• Florida: Bill to force blood banks to open financial books to the public dies

• Pennsylvania: VA hospital gave man wrong blood type

  • "VA watchdog" report of incident

• Hospital may be vicariously liable for agent's negligence
• Supreme Court of Idaho ruling
• Old case but interesting (patient died from air embolism during autologous cell salvage by outsourced cell saver technician
• Blood Bank of Hawaii's laptop stolen (19 Apr. 2010)
• Florida blood banks fight to keep financial records private (12 April 2010)
• National effort scrutinizes costly blood transfusion complications (12 April 2010)
• Blood is big business. Why does it cost so much? (6 Apr. 2010)
• XMRV probed as potential risk to blood supply (4 Apr. 2010)
  • CDC: Xenotropic Murine Leukemia Virus-related Virus
• Keeping our blood supply safe. The FDA must not let politics intrude on decisions about loosening donation guidelines (LA Times editorial, 22 Mar. 2010)
• Leading transplant and transfusion organizations join forces to keep bone marrow donation voluntary (22 Mar. 2010)

Australia

• U.S. injunction threat to Australian stem cell research (28 Aug. 2010)
• Local research for blood substitutes looking good, but don't ditch donors yet (29 Aug. 2010)
• Supply of blood or blood related products for use by Australian residents temporarily overseas
  • Came across this protocol from the Australian NBA and wondered if there was something similar in Canada
• Deputy Coroner finds blood transfusion may have saved baby (9 July 2010)
  • Coroner's Inquest Findings into deaths of 2 infants  (full text)

• Researchers developing biochip to serve as in vivo medical lab (8 June 2010)

• Red Cross asked to explain blood donor policy (9 June 2010)

• Wrong blood given to patient (21 May 2010)

•  Researchers develop cheap paper test for ABO grouping (4 May 2010)
  • Khan MS, Thouas G, Shen W, Whyte G, Garnier G. Paper diagnostic for instantaneous blood typing. Anal Chem 2010 May 15;82(10):4158-64.
• Blood service updates policy on chronic fatigue syndrome
• Viral link to chronic fatigue sparks blood donor review (20 Apr. 2010)
  • CBS first to ban donations from people with chronic fatigue syndrome (7 Apr. 2010)

• Demand for IVIG leaves toddlers wanting (6 Feb. 2010)

  • National Blood Authority (see IVIG items in right menu)

China & environs

• 80 patients contacted HIV via transfusion at hospital 12 years ago (21 Jan. 2010)
• HIV / AIDS sufferers protest over rising infection levels (8 Dec. 2009)

UK

• Legal experts argue that blood transfusion should not proceed without informed consent (24 Aug. 2010)
  • Farrell A, Brazier M. Consent for blood transfusion. BMJ 2010; 341:c4336.
  • SaBTO meeting summary, 6 July 2010
• Lower price for donated blood to save NHS hospitals £50m over 2 yrs (NHSBT reorganization to decrease no. of testing & processing centres credited) (20 Aug. 2010)
• Foal survives equine neonatal isoerythrolysis via transfusion (19 Aug. 2010)
  • Blue Cross horse saves foal (photos of affected foal's icterus)
  • Background: Equine Neonatal Isoerythrolysis (neat site - think HDN)
• Breakthrough as rbc made from IVF embryos (16 Aug. 2010)
  • Mountford JC, Olivier E, Jordanides NE, de Sousa P, Turner ML. Red blood cells from pluripotent stem cells for use in transfusion. Regen Med. 2010 May;5(3):411–23.
  • Mountford J, Olivier E, Turner M. Prospects for the manufacture of red cells for transfusion. Br J Haematol. 2010 Apr;149(1):22–34. Epub 2010 Feb 11.
• 'There will be blood' (overview of search for blood substitutes, The Independent, 2 Aug. 2010)
• Spotlight on '09 IT award for Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust’s BloodTrack (inc. interview with Mike Murphy) (20 July 2010)
• NHS to undergo 'radical overhaul'  (12 July 2010) | Highlights:
  • Hospitals will leave NHS to create "vibrant" industry of social enterprises
  • GPs to take charge of much of the budget
  • Up to 500 GP consortia will control hospitals, mental health and community services
  • Abolition of all 10 strategic health authorities and 152 primary care trusts
  • New structure accountable to independent NHS board free from political interference
  • BMA response with links to govt. papers
• Elderly woman dies from circulatory overload 2 days after transfusion (coroner's investigation) (8 June 2010)
• Jehovah's Witness,15, crushed by car dies after refusing transfusion (18 May 2010)
• Patient Consent for Blood Transfusion - A Consultation by the Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs
• Woman says she was left in pain after donating blood
•  Ash cloud puts lives of bone marrow patients at risk (18 Apr. 2010)
  • Volcanic ash delays lifesaving stem cell transplants (20 Apr. 2010)
• Judicial review rules that government decision not to offer higher compensation to tainted blood victims was flawed
  • The Queen on application of Andrew Michael March - claimant & the Sec. of State for Health - defendant (England and Wales High Court decision, 16 Apr. 2010)
• Judicial review over calls for higher compensation to victims of contaminated blood (25 Mar. 2010)
• Family raise money to sue hospital over blood mix-up (17 Mar. 2010)
• Human Tissue Authority warns of unlawful cord blood collection (9 Mar. 2010)
• Scotland: Scots close to medicine’s Holy Grail ... a true blood substitute (14 Mar. 2010)