Leiden University Launches Master’s Programme In Transfusion Medicine And Cellular And Tissue Therapies
LUMC and Leiden University will start the new two-year online master’s program in Transfusion Medicine and Cellular and Tissue Therapies from October 2023. The master’s is offered jointly with the Autonomous University of Barcelona (AUB).
The field of transfusion medicine has grown considerably in recent decades. It covers the entire process from development to administration of blood products, such as blood transfusions but also cell therapies. Despite many innovative developments, new challenges have also emerged. Many medical and other similar programs approach the field differently, fragmenting knowledge within the field.
Transfusion medicine
In the new master’s program, professors and other experts share the most up-to-date knowledge in transfusion medicine and cell and tissue therapies. Courses taught include: Blood Transfusion, Immunohematology and Project Management in a Blood and Tissue Bank. The collaboration between Barcelona and Leiden represents one of the most powerful international alliances for creating and transferring knowledge in this field.
LUMC has a rich history in the field of transfusion and transplant immunology and is considered one of the forerunners in the field of regenerative medicine. For example, LUMC researchers have been working for years on cell therapies for mesenchymal stromal cells, tolerogenic dendritic cells, gene therapy of hematopoietic stem cells and CAR-T cells, among others.
A globally unique program
Thanks to the intensive knowledge sharing between Leiden and Barcelona, the two institutions have established a program that is unique worldwide. Participants of the master can go on to play a leading role within transfusion medicine in the future. Thus, they gain knowledge and skills with which they can analyze the latest developments in the field of transfusions and cell therapies and implement them in practice.
The master’s program is offered entirely online in English or Spanish and can be taken part-time by professionals and (international) students with a bachelor’s degree in Medicine, Pharmacy, Biomedical Sciences and Biology. Nurses can also follow the master according if they have at least four years of experience within transfusion medicine.