Minimizing donor exposure in hemotherapy

As with any medical therapy, transfusion has risks and complications that are inherent in its application. There are also many options in standard approaches and alternatives to allogeneic transfusion to be considered that allow hemotherapy to be tailored to the patient's needs, maximizing benefit while reducing risk. Transfusion of standard, allogeneic components selected at random and derived from an altruistic donation by a community volunteer donor continue to comprise the majority of transfusions. However, many steps can be taken to minimize allogeneic exposure and its consequences. Transfusing only when the benefits are clinically important and justify the risks is probably most important. Options abound for pharmacologic intervention, altering collection systems and using the donor as his or her own source of blood to further reduce allogeneic exposure.