The development and widespread availability of recombinant products will effect blood centers through reduced product use, replacement of current products, and novel applications of new products. The greatest amount of clinical experience to date has dealt with the use of recombinant human erythropoietin (r-HuEPO) in the treatment of anemia in end-stage renal failure. Data also support its use in anemia associated with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), cancer, and chronic inflammatory diseases, This article will focus on the effect of erythropoietin on the demand for erythrocyte use. Cancer 67:2708-2711,1991.
LOOD CENTERS such as the New York Blood Center B supply a wide variety of cellular components and plasma fractionation products to their distribution areas (Table ). A number of these products, if not all, may be affected by the development and availability of recombinant products or products arising from other technologies. Blood centers provide not only cellular components, but also plasma fractionation products including coagulation factors, fresh frozen plasma, albumin, immunoglobulin, and fibronectin for wound healing. The effect of new technologies will manifest itself in the following three ways: reduced product use, replacement of current product use, and the novel application of new recornbinant products. Each of these areas will be discussed, although this article will focus on the effect of erythropoietin on the demand for erythrocyte use.
Erythropoietin
The area in which there is the greatest amount of information available is the use of recombinant human erythropoietin (r-HuEPO) to influence the use of erythrocytes for transfusion. Recombinant erythropoietin has had a major effect on correcting the anemia associated with chronic renal failure, has been studied in patients with anemia secondary to acquired immune deficiency