“Our European customers can now use treatment systems for both platelets and plasma that rely on the same instrument for processing. This is a compelling operational benefit to blood centers,” said Claes Glassell, president and CEO of Cerus Corporation.
In addition to this approval, certain countries, such as France and Germany, will require separate approvals of plasma products treated with the Intercept Blood System.
The plasma system was evaluated in order to meet blood center requirements for efficiency, performance and compatibility. The Intercept plasma system is designed to provide increased protection and safety to the blood supply from emerging pathogens, such as west nile virus, chikungunya virus and avian influenza.
Approximately 1.5 million plasma units for transfusion are collected annually in Europe.