Progress and challenges in transfusion medicine, hemostasis, and hemotherapy

Modern transfusion medicine is sophisticated hemotherapy. Cellular and humoral blood components can be relevant in virtually every disease, either as a primary determinant in pathophysiology or as a victim of collateral damage, e. g. during treatment with cytostatic drugs, or as crucial substrates in replacement and hemostasis-navigated hemotherapy. With its interdisciplinary approach modern hemotherapy is a paragon of translational research bridging the bench-to-bedside gap in biomedicine. The state-of-the-art contributions collected here aim to stimulate lively discussions - not only among blood center professionals but also with blood and vascular biologists, hematologists, immunologists, anesthesiologists, intensive care specialists, surgeons, cardiologists, nephrologists, rheumatologists, and pulmonary and infectious disease specialists.