Shortage in Human Blood Supply Drives Innovation in Synthetic Substitutes

A shortfall in human blood supply is prompting the development of synthetic blood products as the market for human blood and blood components continues to expand. These are the latest findings of Kalorama Information (New York, NY, USA), an independent market research firm.

According to the new report, global demand for blood has increased about 6% annually over the last decade, in correlation with the world's growing and aging populations, particularly in the United States, Japan, and Europe. Blood supply, however, has concomitantly declined; the current worldwide supply of blood for transfusions is around 28 million liters per year, while worldwide demand is triple that amount. Innovation in synthetic blood products is an integral component to addressing this shortfall between blood supply and demand, since such products are not dependent on voluntary donations and can be manufactured in quantities to meet demand. Some synthetic products such as recombinant factors are already well established and their use is projected to grow by 9% annually through 2012. Others, such as hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) and perflurocarbon-based oxygen carriers (PFCs), are expected to enter the market by 2010.

"In the United States alone, the 65 and older segment is expected to double in the next 30 years," said Bruce Carlson, publisher of Kalorama Information. "And while the Baby Boomer population ages and requires more blood, the prime donor age population will shrink, exacerbating the shortfall."

Synthetic blood substitutes have long been sought for treatment of chronic and acute anemia and for the rapid replacement of blood lost after trauma, and are therefore currently labeled as "oxygen carriers.” This is because they are unable to mimic many of the other functions of blood; they do not contain cells, antibodies, or coagulation factors. Consequently, other synthetic partial blood substitutes developed to remedy this lack include platelet substitutes, which cover a different realm than oxygen carriers, and are created for mainly one purpose - coagulation. They are considered mainly when needed to eliminate risks of bacterial contamination and the short shelf life of natural platelets.

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