"QUOTES"

Emerging Viruses

"It's not always possible to predict what the next problem will be or to potentially defend or study every single possible problem."
Sept 19, 2002 - Dr. Jesse Goodman, Deputy Director, FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research

"Many emerging pathogens will elude the stringent and sensitive donor testing already in place which, unfortunately, requires advanced technologies."
N L Nluban (Abstract) – Annals of the New York Academy of Science 2005;1054:325-41

"The isolation of live West Nile virus from a blood product indicates that the virus can survive in some blood components, and probably can be transmitted by transfusion."
Dr. Lyle Petersen, CDC West Nile virus expert, Sept 19, 2002

"No validated test for this purpose [testing West Nile Virus] is currently available."
Sept 19, 2002 - Dr. Jesse Goodman, Deputy Director, FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research

"As of yesterday, the number of West Nile virus cases reported to CDC has reached 1,641, with 80 deaths. [almost 5%]"
Sept 19, 2002 - Centers for Disease Control, Media Relations Transcript

"Particularly with emerging diseases… as in infectious diseases in general … it's not always possible to predict what the next problem [to the blood supply] will be or to potentially defend or study every single possible problem."
Sept 19, 2002- Dr. Jesse Goodman, Deputy Director, FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research

"When the possibility of West Nile virus transmission by blood transfusion first came to light in early September [2002], Louis Katz, MD, medical director of the Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center conducted an unscientific survey. He went to the lobby of the Davenport, Iowa, blood bank and asked people waiting to donate if they had been bitten by a mosquito lately, and, therefore, could possibly be carriers of the infectious agent. Nineteen out of 20 answered yes."
Amednews.com – The Newspaper For Physicians, Oct 7, 2002

Every year we here that the blood supply is safe. It was certain said back in the 1970’s. And then this happened:
"This form of hepatitis afflicts 120,000 Americans each year, about 90,000 of whom contract the disease through blood transfusions, according to F.D.A. officials. More than 1,000 of the victims die each year."
The New York Times October 26, 1984