Is this another disaster about to happen? I don't believe this! **********************************************************

Apr 10, 2001 - 09:31 AM

South Africa Becomes First Country to Approve Blood Substitute By Ravi Nessman Associated Press Writer

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa (AP) - South Africa has become the first country in the world to approve a solution that can be used in place of blood in transfusions, the product's developer announced Tuesday. The solution, Hemopure, acts like red blood cells, carrying oxygen to the body's tissues. South Africa's Medicines Control Council approved it Monday to treat acute anemia in surgery patients, said Carl Rausch, CEO of Biopure, which developed the product.

Hemopure is made using hemoglobin from cow blood that is stripped of its protein and then purified, Rausch told a news conference. The process prevents the transmission of bovine diseases such as mad cow disease to humans because such conditions are caused by a mutated protein, he said.

However, some researchers have raised fears that any medical product made from animals presents a risk of introducing new diseases to people.

The solution can be used with patients of any blood type and would eliminate the risk of catching infectious diseases - including HIV - from tainted blood transfusions, Rausch said. Donor blood must be refrigerated and can only be stored for 42 days, while Hemopure can be stored at room temperature and last for two years.

Side effects include slightly increased risk of stomach pain, weakness, hypertension, jaundice and nausea. But its problems are no greater than those associated with regular blood transfusions, Biopure officials said.

Dr. Luc Noel, coordinator for blood transfusion safety at the World Health Organization in Geneva, said Hemopure could be an important substitute for blood transfusions in developing countries with shortages of safe blood, provided the product is reasonably priced. He also cautioned that its use must be closely monitored to detect unforeseen side effects.

"If there is any alternative that is safer than the potential risks of transfusions, then it should be used," he said.

Dr. Richard Friedland, CEO of Netcare, the health care company that jointly holds the license to the product in South Africa, declined to say how much the product would sell for here. However, he said developing countries would pay less for Hemopure than wealthy countries.

Hemopure is the first blood substitute approved for use in humans. Biopure has already received approval in the United States and Europe for a different blood substitute for dogs.

Biopure plans to file an application this year for approval of Hemopure in the United States and Europe.

Biopure, a biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Mass., has licensed distribution of Hemopure in South Africa to Tshepo Pharmaceuticals, which is jointly owned by Netcare and Community Healthcare, a holding company with several health care related investments.

AP-ES-04-10-01 0931EDT © Copyright 2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved.

-- Anonymous, April 10, 2001