Red blood cell transfusion and outcome in cancer

Oncology services utilize about 15% of the blood transfusion resources in the USA. Red blood cell transfusion is performed immediately before, during or after major surgery to compensate for blood loss and hemodilution. However, a lack of evidence-based guidelines leads to variable transfusion practices among clinicians. The benefits of transfusing blood products are obvious in life-threatening low blood cell counts or bleeding, but it is...