George Garratty, PhD, FRCPath, Scientific Director, American Red Cross Blood Services, Southern California Region

"Relationship of Blood Groups to Disease: Do Blood Groups Have a Biological Role?"

Three main areas will be discussed:

1. Relationship of blood groups and various diseases, particularly associations with cancer, coagulation and infection.  Statistics are related to modern concepts of tumor immunology, blood group chemistry, and bacterial and parasitic receptors.
2. Relationship to immunologically important proteins ([e.g., adhesion molecules (selectins/integrins); cytokines, complement].
3. Diseases (particularly hematological) related to increased, decreased (including rare gene deletions) and acquired blood group antigens (e.g., weakening of ABH in leukemia; increase of i in HEMPAS; acanthocytosis and Kell/Lutheran systems;  stomatocytosis and Rhnull; elliptocytosis and Ge; Duffy and  glycophorins  A/B and malaria; Tn and leukemia).

Mark Popovsky, MD, Haemonetics Coorportion

"To Breathe or Not to Breathe: Pulmonary Consequences of Transfusion"

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Harvey Klein, M.D.

"Pathogen Inactivation of Blood Components - the Consensus Conference and Beyond"

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Lecture Summary