What's New

Version 4.8.0 of the ISBT 128 Product Description Code Database is now available to licensed facilities here. Updates are listed in the version control sheet. The new database can be downloaded as an Access database or as Text file tables.

01 February 2012

An updated facility identification database is now available to licensed facilities.  The database contains the names and locations of all ICCBBA registered facilities worldwide and their assigned facility identification numbers.  It is available both as an Excel file (collection_facilities.xls) and as a tab delimited Text file (collection_facilities.txt). Both documents are available in the password-protected area of the web site.  Amendments to entries in these tables should be notified to the ICCBBA office.  (For US facilities registered and/or licensed with the FDA, the name and location of your facility should match what appears on your FDA registration or license.) View it here. 

12 January 2012

The newest version of the Technical Specification is now available.

View the document here.

A major change in this version of the Technical Specification is the retirement of Data Structures 015 and 016 that were used to code HLA genomic types.  This was needed because of the increased number of characters needed to encode these genotypes.  A link to a reference table is provided to ensure backward compatibility for products labeled with these data structures.

21 December 2011

The World Health Organization has published the report of the first meeting of the WHO/ICCBBA Standardization of Organ Nomenclature Globally (SONG) Project held 4-5 May 2011 in Geneva.

View the report here.

The report is accompanied by a preliminary draft nomenclature which provides an outline structure on which the more detailed terms and definitions will be built.

View the draft nomenclature here.

Comments are welcomed and should be forwarded to Dr Luc Noel at the World Health Organization (noell@who.int).

21 November 2011

License Fees for 2012 have now been published.  Click here for an explanation of the changes to fees, and here to access the updated fee page.

11 November 2011

GS1 is an international not-for-profit association that manages a supply chain coding system.  ICCBBA has been working with GS1 and  other organizations to create  a standard for patient and care-giver identification.  The mid-term report from the group is now available for comment.  Please respond to questions in the report by entering them into the appropriate fields at the end of the report and clicking on “Submit Form” by September 30, 2011.  Alternatively, send comments to techdir@isbt128.org

View the report here.

The US Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability (ACBSA) has made a number of recommendations to the FDA to improve Organ transplant safety.  One of their recommendations was to:

“Identify ways to promote adoption of standardized systems (e.g., ISBT 128) for identification and codification of all organ transplants (including country of origin for those acquired abroad) to facilitate tracking and traceability."

View the letter here.

22 August 2011

The World Network for Blood and Marrow Transplantation” has submitted a letter to the European Commission (EC) supporting ISBT 128 for Cellular Therapy products and recommending that the EC provide a clear indication that the implementation of ISBT 128 for cellular therapy products will be compatible with the European Coding System

See the WBMT letter to the European Commission here:  http://www.wbmt.org/

12 August 2011

The World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA) has posted a position paper discussing how to handle facility confidentiality when labeling Cellular  Therapy products from unrelated donors 

In this paper the, "WMDA encourages the efforts to adapt ISBT 128 as an effective bar-coded information coding system that supports a globally unique identity,standardized product coding and full traceability of cellular therapy products."

See the position paper here:

http://www.wbmt.org/fileadmin/pdf/01_General/WBMT_position_statement_for_European_Labeling_and_ISBT.pdf

 12 August 2011

ICCBBA has presented Dr. Clive Hohberger with its One World Award. The One World Award recognizes international efforts to standardize information management for blood, tissue, cellular therapies, and organs.

The presentation by Dr. Jørgen Georgsen, Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of ICCBBA, took place at the annual AABB meeting in San Diego, CA on October 24, 2011.

To view the full press release click here.

Recently, The African Society of Blood Transfusion (AfSBT) acknowledged ICCBBA in a letter of Appreciation.

In 2010 ICCBBA together with AABB, donated 200 of AABB's Technical Manual to South Africa to support education and training in blood transfusion technology in African countries.

One of ICCBBA's Missions and Goals is to provide technical consultation to promote the acceptance of international standards and national guidelines in transfusion medicine. This donation supports our goal promoting the standardization of blood banking practices and increasing patient safety worldwide.

View the thank you letter here.

11 May 2011

ICCBBA enters into official working relationship with the World Health Organization (WHO).

On April 11th ICCBBA and WHO signed a letter of working relations agreeing to a two year collaborative work program in support of World Health Assembly Resolution WHA63.22.

The advisory group will begin work on developing an internationally agreed upon core nomenclature of cell, tissue and organ transplant.

Read the full press release here.

This organization is an Alliance of Blood Services within the European Union or the European Free Trade Zone. The goal of the EBA is to contribute to the safety, security, and cost effectiveness of the blood, tissue, and cell supply for the citizens of the Europe by developing and maintaining an efficient and strong collaboration amongst European blood and tissue services.

In addition to being ICCBBA Board Chairman, Dr. Georgsen is a current member of MEETAG and ICCBBA’s Editorial Board.  For a full description of Dr. Georgsen’s many accomplishments see here.

2010 Cellular Therapy Year in review

ICCBBA has published the 2010 CT annual report.  It contains the progress made by the CTCLAG group in 2010, additions to CT terminology, user perspective, events and activities ICCBBA participated in, and a list of frequently asked questions.  View it here.

15 April 2011

Dr. Clive Hohberger, will receive the ICCBBA One World Award honoring original research and innovative technical development for the advancement of global information standards in transfusion and transplantation medicine, at the International Alliance for Biological Standardization Symposium on Advances in Transfusion Safety, July 2011, in Singapore.

To read the full Press Release click here.

23 Mar 2011

The Boards of AABB, ASBMT, ASFA, EBMT, FACT, ICCBBA, ISBT, ISCT, JACIE, NMDP and WMDA issued a consensus statement in support of the use of ISBT 128 in the coding of hematopoietic progenitor cell and other therapeutic cell products.

The Boards of the above organizations encourage cell therapy facilities to move forward with the implementation of ISBT 128 coding and labeling.

Joint Statement - PDF

21 Mar 2011

ICCBBA has just released the ISBT 128 Standard Labeling of Human Tissues v1.0.0. This document can be found on the website here. This will in part replace the Product Code Structure and Labeling Document.

08 Feb 2011

 ICCBBA has posted Implementation Guides on the following topics:

• Use of Data Matrix Symbols with ISBT 128
• Use of the Manufacturer's Data File
• Use of the Product Code Structure [003] - Tissues
• Use of Dimensions Data Structure [029]
• Use of Red Cell Antigen with Test History Data Structure [30]
• Choosing an On-Demand label Printer

These guides are intended to help users apply the ISBT 128 Standard by providing implementation examples based on the requirements provided in the ISBT 128 Technical Specification. To view these guides click here.

08 Feb 2011