Apheresis is a procedure that involves removing whole blood from the vein of a patient or donor. The blood is then separated using an apheresis machine so that one or more specific blood components can be removed.
Apheresis is a painless procedure and takes approximately two hours, or only slightly longer than a conventional blood donation.
What is apheresis used for?
Apheresis is used for the treatment for certain medical conditions, such as blood disorders and some cancers, in which a part of the blood that might contain disease-provoking elements is removed.
It may also be used for donor collection of specific blood components such as plasma, platelet cells and red blood cells. These components are then used to treat patients with a variety of disorders.