JW Bioscience, a subsidiary of JW Pharmaceutical, said Wednesday that it has launched Sangray, a new concept blood radiation device that does not use hazardous radioactive materials.

Sangray, developed by Hitachi, a Japanese-based medical device company, is a medical device used to prevent transfusion-related graft-versus-host disease, a disease that can occur after transfusion, by irradiating a blood bag for transfusion with X-rays.

The device is also Korea’s first blood radiation device that does not use 'Cesium-137,” which is a hazardous radioactive substance.

Transfusion-related graft-versus-host disease is an ailment in which the transfused lymphocytes attack normal tissues of patients, who have decreased immune functions, resulting in a high mortality rate. As there is no cure for the disease, the process of irradiating the blood bag before transfusion is essential.

Unlike the conventional devices that use Cesium-137 and emits gamma rays at all times, Sangray induces X-rays through high voltage only during operation, making it safer and more accurate to use, the company said.

Also, since there are no hazardous radioactive materials, there is no risk of leakage of radioactive materials due to natural disasters as well as the removal of unnecessary cost burden due to radioactive waste disposal, it added.

“Transfusion-related graft-versus-host disease is a serious disorder with a high mortality rate, and blood irradiation alone is the only way to prevent it,” a company official said. “We will develop diverse marketing activities based on proven academic data about the safety and efficacy of the products, as they are used by many medical institutions in Korea and abroad.”

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