Cerus Corporation Acknowledges Growing Monkeypox Outbreak and Public Health Emergency

Spread of monkeypox infections serves as another real-world example of the ongoing risk of emerging pathogens and the potential role for pathogen reduction technology, like the INTERCEPT Blood System, in securing the blood supply

CONCORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Cerus Corporation (Nasdaq: CERS) acknowledges the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ declaration of monkeypox as a national Public Health Emergency. Currently, more than 10,000 cases of monkeypox have been reported across the U.S., and over 30,000 cases have been confirmed globally.

While to date monkeypox has not been reported to be a transfusion-transmitted infectious disease (TTID), only limited data are available currently. For nearly two decades, the INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets and plasma has been shown to inactivate a broad spectrum of pathogens. In a previous study with INTERCEPT platelets, vaccinia virus, a member of the Poxiviridae family which includes smallpox and monkeypox, was inactivated to high levels.¹

In recent years, pathogen inactivation technologies have played an important role in prospective risk reduction of transfusion associated emerging infectious diseases like West Nile Virus, Zika and Chikungunya. INTERCEPT can be implemented before tests for these infectious targets are developed and available. Blood transfusions are a common and critical supportive therapy used for many types of patients. Pathogen inactivation technologies, such as Cerus’ INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets and plasma, provide blood centers with a proactive solution to help secure blood safety and availability.

“The current monkeypox outbreak serves as yet another in a long list of reminders that the emergence of pathogens across the globe can have dangerous and disruptive impacts to blood donors, patients, and healthcare systems everywhere,” stated William ‘Obi’ Greenman, Cerus’ president and chief executive officer. “Looking at the historical challenges of managing risk and uncertainty in the blood supply, it is good to witness the peace of mind that the INTERCEPT Blood System affords our blood center and hospital customers now that many countries have implemented our technology for the majority of their platelet components.”

ABOUT THE INTERCEPT BLOOD SYSTEM

Over 300 blood centers globally use the INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets and/or plasma as a proactive approach designed to help protect the blood supply from a wide range of pathogens by inactivating contaminants from donated units. By providing broad spectrum protection to these blood components, pathogen reduction technology like the INTERCEPT Blood System can serve as a proactive safeguard for the blood supply, particularly in instances where testing does not currently exist for an emerging target, thus enabling continuous donor availability during an outbreak.

In nearly a dozen countries, INTERCEPT platelets are the standard of care for their respective national platelet supplies. No pathogen inactivation system has been shown to inactivate all pathogens. For more information on the INTERCEPT Blood System visit www.cerus.com.

ABOUT CERUS

Cerus Corporation is dedicated solely to safeguarding the world’s blood supply and aims to become the preeminent global blood products company. Headquartered in Concord, California, the company develops and supplies vital technologies and pathogen-protected blood components to blood centers, hospitals, and ultimately patients who rely on safe blood. The INTERCEPT Blood System for platelets and plasma is available globally and remains the only pathogen reduction system with both CE mark and FDA approval for these two blood components. The INTERCEPT red blood cell system is under regulatory review in Europe, and in late-stage clinical development in the US. Also in the US, the INTERCEPT Blood System for Cryoprecipitation is approved for the production of INTERCEPT Fibrinogen Complex, a therapeutic product for the treatment and control of bleeding, including massive hemorrhage, associated with fibrinogen deficiency. For more information about Cerus, visit www.cerus.com and follow us on LinkedIn.

INTERCEPT and the INTERCEPT Blood System are trademarks of Cerus Corporation.

¹ Lin L, et al. Inactivation of viruses in platelet concentrates by photochemical treatment with amotosalen and long-wavelength ultraviolet light. Transfusion 2005;45:580-590