Human Blood Groups: Clinical Importance in Transfusion Medicine

Human blood groups, the parents of transfusion medicine, are the foundation of supportive transfusion therapy, especially in the context of malignant and non-malignant hematology. This discovered “magic” of human blood – blood group systems, is the basis of alternative transfusion therapy in critical situations. The subsequent discovery and characterization of blood group systems have had a profound impact on clinical practice, ensuring the safety of blood transfusions and improving patient outcomes. Human blood group systems are extremely important in protocols for massive transfusion therapy, clearly defined transfusion strategies in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and blood transfusion in autoimmune hemolytic anemia. In oncohematology, it is imperative to implement measures that avert the occurrence of hemorrhagic complications during chemotherapy treatment. This is linked to the formulation of alternative transfusion strategies in circumstances where ABO-identical blood components are not available. In the contemporary era, characterized by progressive advances in the field of oncofertility, blood transfusion management is of paramount importance for the prevention of hemolytic disease of the newborn. In multi-transfused patients with hematological diseases, human blood groups are of primary importance for the choice of alternative transfusion protocols, particularly in cases of rare Rh phenotypes. Given the entire range of blood group antigens discovered to date, it is clear that it is impossible to ensure complete identity between donor and recipient in blood transfusions. Preventing any complications in transfusion medicine is more important than treating them, and it depends on the management of transfusion therapy in each clinical field of medicine.