Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy

Unit

The Transfusion Center of the University Campus Bio-Medico Hospital is managed by the Transfusion Medicine and Cell Therapy Unit.

It has the task of evaluating, together with the treating physicians, the requests for transfusion from the hospitalisation wards, for an optimal assignment of the blood components. In the case of surgery with high blood loss, it carries out procedures for collecting and storing the patient's blood, preemptively treating preoperative anaemia conditions, reducing bleeding during and after surgery with the use of anti-haemorrhagic drugs, trying to reduce transfusions that are not necessary. It also supplies blood components treated with special filtration or irradiation techniques, to be used for transfusion of critically ill patients such as those undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

The Transfusion Center of the Campus Bio-Medico Hospital has received the authorisation and institutional accreditation from the regulatory bodies and maintains the ISO 9001:2015 quality certification, issued by Globe and recognised by Accredia, an Italian accreditation body.

Donating blood

At the Transfusion Center of the University Hospital it is possible to give blood from Monday to Saturday, from 08.00 to 11.30, while fasting.

All people can give blood who

  • are between the age of 18 and 65
  • weigh no less than 50 kg
  • have not had severe diseases
  • are not suffering from chronic diseases

Upon his arrival, the donor is greeted by specialised personnel, who inform him about the methods of donation. In the case of the first donation, after some preliminary tests, the medical examination and the consent to the donation follows the blood collection, which can take place in two forms: donation of whole blood or a single component (plasma or platelets). The latter, called the “selective donation”, takes place through a cellular separator that collects some components from the blood, returning the remaining amount to the donor.  In the case of donated whole blood, once transferred to the fractionation laboratory, it is separated into three different blood components (plasma, red blood cells and platelets in concentrated form) and is subjected to laboratory tests, to exclude the donor from being able to transmit infectious diseases to the transfused patient. The results of the analysis are subsequently sent to the donor, who can thus also keep his health under control.

Research fields

  • Development of “Patient Blood Management” programmes
  • Improvement of surgical bleeding control methods
  • Regeneration of damaged tissues through the clinical use of cells derived from blood and bone marrow
  • Treatment of hemorrhagic cystitis after stem cell transplantation with application of fibrin glue by endoscopy
  • Use of marrow stem cells for a more rapid regeneration of bone tissues damaged by degenerative processes