Evaluation of the COM.TEC cell separator in predicting the yield of harvested CD34+ cells

This multicenter study was performed with the intention to evaluate the exactness of the predicted CD34+ cell yield calculated by two leukapheresis programs of the cell separator COM.TEC upon the number of donor's circulating CD34+ cells and the blood volume processed.

Patients and healthy donors (n = 166) received mobilization by chemotherapy and/or granulocyte colony-stimulating factor and underwent CD34+ cell harvest by the leukapheresis programs MNC or RV-PBSC (n = 203).

CD34+ cells were collected by 112 harvests on MNC and by 91 collections on RV-PBSC. The median collection efficiency of CD34+ cells was significantly better for the program MNC than for RV-PBSC (p < 0.001): 67% (31-109) vs. 42% (19-100). The collected CD34+ cell yield was in median more exactly by MNC than by RV-PBSC (p < 0.001): 85% (31-176) vs. 59% (22-110) of the predicted value. Concentrates obtained by RV-PBSC showed in median significantly higher percentages of mononuclear cells (p < 0.001) and CD34+ cells (p < 0.001), 86% (43-99) vs. 56% (25-95) and 1.2% (0.2-14.3) vs. 0.4% (0.1-6.0), and had lower contaminations by erythrocytes (p < 0.001) and platelets (p < 0.001), 13 mL (4-48) vs. 25 mL (5-60) and 1.9 x 1011 vs. 3.1 x 1011, than those harvested by MNC.

The significantly better collection efficiency of CD34+ cells and the more exact prediction of the harvested CD34+ cell yield make the leukapheresis program MNC a safe and efficient procedure. However, concentrates collected by RV-PBSC are of a better cellular quality with a significantly higher percentage of mononuclear and CD34+ cells and a lower contamination by erythrocytes and platelets.