Hemotherapy - hemostasis

Problem

Venous and arterial thrombosis and associated vascular disease are the leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Direct and indirect annual costs and some of its treatments exceed 49 billion euros in the European Union, including direct health costs (24 billion euros), loss of productivity (17 billion euros) and patient care (9 billion euros).

It is expected that the medical costs associated with the treatment of these conditions, some of them preventable, will increase exponentially over the next two decades. Macroangiopathic and microbial dysfunctions are likely to be strongly implicated in the origin of these diseases, which present high morbidity/mortality rates.

Approach

Haemorrhage and thrombosis represent the two sides of vascular and haemostatic alterations (from a haemorrhage control perspective). The group explores the clinical, genetic and molecular characteristics of both congenital and acquired haemostasis in order to obtain solid foundations for a better understanding of these disorders.

Endothelial dysfunction (ED, loss of endothelial function) is a common condition in many health disorders and leads to the most serious complications. Investigating the mechanisms of ED at the macro and microvascular level is of great importance in defining the objectives for preventing and/or correcting its harmful impact on the disorders (mainly vascular) in which it is involved.

Impact

The group has improved the characterisation of haemorrhagic and thrombotic phenotypes and it has identified common and specific biomarkers of ED; it has investigated and defined biomarkers of ED that predict graft versus host disease (GVHD) within the context of the transplantation of hematopoietic progenitors; it has explored therapeutic interventions in ED and microvascular complications; it has evaluated pharmacological/transfusion therapies; and it has developed algorithms for the diagnosis and treatment of thrombotic microangiopathies.