Thanks to CIHR-funding, national collaboration and a lot of perseverance, a team of researchers is embarking on a journey to provide evidence on an unanswered question about blood transfusion. Learn more about the work behind the new, SexMatters clinical trial on sex-matched versus mismatched red blood cell transfusions in this blog.

Canadian Blood Services Research Engineer Dr. John Blake and his trainees apply network modelling, a computer-based optimization technique to keep Canada’s Lifeline safe and reliable for years to come.

Canadian Blood Services 2024 Lay Science Writing Competition offered in partnership with the Centre for Blood Research (CBR) provides research trainees an opportunity to exercise and enhance their science communication skills by sharing their research with lay audiences. Read Mahsa Yazdanbakhsh’s description of her research as a PhD candidate in the lab of Dr. Jason Acker; the write-up claimed third prize in this year’s competition.

Canadian Blood Services’ partnership with the Centre for Blood Research (CBR) at the University of British Columbia (UBC) is helping to train the next generation of researchers in transfusion science. Each year, CBR’s Research Day provides an opportunity for CBR Summer Studentship Program participants to share their research projects with their peers and other labs while practicing presentation skills through short talks and poster presentations. Read about event highlights in this blog written by students from this year’s cohort.

Canadian Blood Services’ senior scientist, Dr. Donald R. Branch and his lab have recently contributed to the discovery of new information about the regulation of neutrophils – a type of immune cell in blood that fights infections. These results have been published in the high-impact scientific journal, Nature, and add to our understanding of inflammation.

Canadian Blood Services’ partnership with the Centre for Blood Research (CBR) at the University of British Columbia (UBC) has been renewed to 2027 to continue training the next generation of researchers in transfusion science.

Canadian Blood Services research trainee Poojan Joshi reflects on her experience attending the Canadian Society for Transfusion Medicine annual conference and Canadian Blood Services’ Research Day in Saskatoon last month.

Canadian Blood Services research trainees reflect on the 2024 Canadian Society for Transfusion Medicine (CSTM) conference and their experience as planning committee members for Canadian Blood Services’ Research Day.

The Centre for Blood Research (CBR) Norman Bethune Symposium gathers scientists, clinicians, healthcare professionals, and trainees to discuss advancements in the field of blood research. The 12th Annual event, held in April 2024, consisted of expert talks on thalassemia, thrombocytopenia, sickle cell disease, and other bleeding disorders, demonstrating the breadth of ongoing research.

Since 2007, the Ontario Regional Blood Coordinating Network (ORBCoN) and Canadian Blood Services have partnered in hosting an annual Transfusion Medicine Education Symposium and Workshop for transfusion health-care professionals with the primary objective of providing best practice information on blood transfusion to healthcare staff in community and rural hospitals across Ontario. In this blog, Valérie Rhéaume of ORBCoN provides a summary of the most recent event, held in April 2024.