Jennifer Ficenec: What Happens to Blood Products After Hospitals Say No?
Jennifer Ficenec, Executive Vice President at Blood Centers of America, shared on LinkedIn:
”The Upcycling Mindset: What Happens to Blood Products After Hospitals Say No?
Blood and – any of its components – has a limited shelf life during which it is safe for transfusion.
What happens when it is no longer safe for transfusion?
We can repurpose blood and its components to be used in:
– research
– manufacturing
– lab training.
What does it mean? Researchers need live cells and blood-based components as controls or for their experiments.
Sometime we need to test the response of real human cells to new innovations such as chemical compounds, medical devise, or the plastic that is used to handle blood.
Another use is for the training of students and lab personnel on how to handle blood, and its components is essential.
At BCA, we are committed to finding “𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦” 𝘢𝘯𝘥 “𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦” to those blood and blood-based components we collected from donors to give more use to research and scientific manufacturing community, not just those who need blood or its components directly.
Yes collected blood is used in transfusions by patients who suffered accidents but there are also those who suffer from immune diseases, cancer and other conditions where the blood or blood-based components can be used to treat or research treatments.
Learn more about upcycled products, including LRS chambers that are available for purchase.
Follow us for more on cell therapy innovation and our commitment to patients.”

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