title: A shared regulatory perspective on deferral from blood donation of men who have sex with men (MSM).
abstract: National Regulatory Authorities (NRAs) establish deferral criteria for donors with risk factors for transfusion transmissible infections (TTI). In most jurisdictions, epidemiological data show that men who have sex with men (MSM) have a significantly higher rate of TTI than the general population. Nevertheless, changes from an indefinite donor deferral for MSM have been considered in many countries in response to concerns over a perceived discrimination and questioning of the scientific need. Changes to MSM donor deferral criteria should be based on sound scientific evidence. Safety of transfusion recipients should be the first priority, and stakeholder input should be sought.
authors.affiliation: Office of Blood Research and Review, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, MD, USA.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Epstein
authors.forename: P R
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Ganz
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Seitz
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jutzi
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schaerer
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Michaud
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Agbanyo
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Prosser
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heiden
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Saint-Marie
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Oualikene-Gonin
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hamaguchi
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yasuda
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001782:Blood Donors; D058731:Blood Safety; D046148:Donor Selection; D018451:Homosexuality, Male; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012307:Risk Factors; D011049:Social Control Policies; D065227:Transfusion Reaction; D014766:Viremia / Q000209:etiology
keywords: blood collection; donors; epidemiology; motivation/recruitment; transfusion medicine (in general)