27 May 2021 (Thursday) - BTLP-TACT Exercise

Time for another BTLP-TACT exercise…

I was presented with one case – a forty-five year-old woman in out patients (with diagnosis “allo antibody”) requiring group & save. 

She grouped as B Rh(D) Positive with an antibody screen positive in cell 2.

I requested panels. The IAT and enzyme panels were positive in cells 3 and 5 which corresponds with anti-E. 

I got the green light.

26 May 2021 (Wednesday) - BT NEQAS

 

I did the BT NEQAS a little while ago and got the result today... i got it right...

25 May 2021 (Tuesday) - Scott Syndrome

Scott syndrome…. No – I’d never heard of it either. A link to this article appeared on the Facebook “Hematology Interest Group” page. 

Scott syndrome is a coagulation disorder that results in an impaired thrombin formation due to a dysfunctional phosphatidylserine transporter. However this bleeding disorder shows normal coagulation studies. The syndrome is diagnosed based on high shear stress platelet assay using the Cone and Plate(let) Analyzer— CPA  test which showed decreased platelet aggregation sizes and decreased surface covered by the aggregates.

24 May 2021 (Monday) - Sickle Cell update

The nice people at the American Society of Hematology sent me an update on the latest developments in sickle cell disease. On Friday I said about a leukaemia update “Rather clinical, a little over my head in places… but valuable background reading”. This one really speaks volumes about the difference in healthcare on both sides of the Atlantic…

Sickle Cell Trait Cited in Police Custody Deaths A review of autopsy and police reports found that sickle cell trait was cited as a cause or factor in 47 deaths that occurred in law enforcement custody since the 1970s.

AMA Vows to Fight Racism in Medicine The American Medical Association has acknowledged its prejudiced past and released a strategic plan to fight racism and white supremacy in the U.S. health care system.

Moderate Democrats Push for Bipartisan Drug Pricing Reform A group of 10 House Democrats, including Representatives Scott Peters (D-CA) and Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), questioned the feasibility of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s drug pricing bill, H.R. 3, which would allow Medicare to negotiate pricing and fine pharmaceutical companies that don’t comply.

 

21 May 2021 (Friday) - Chromic Leukaemias

The nice people at the American Society of Hematology sent me an update on the latest developments in chronic leukaemias. Rather clinical, a little over my head in places… but valuable background reading.

Here are the highlights in chronic leukemias:

Acalabrutinib Induces Durable Remission in Patients With Treatment Naïve Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Treatment with the next-generation covalent BTK inhibitor was safe and led to durable, long-term remission in a small group of patients with previously untreated CLL, according to a study published in Blood.

FDA Grants Breakthrough Therapy Designation to Asciminib for CML The FDA’s decision is based on data from the phase III ASCEMBL trial evaluating asciminib for the treatment of patients with Ph+ CML in chronic phase, including those who harbor the T315I mutation.

Trilaciclib Approved for Chemotherapy-Induced Myelosuppression The FDA has approved trilaciclib to reduce the frequency of myelosuppression in adult patients receiving certain types of chemotherapy for extensive-stage small cell lung cancer.