Dr. Steven Drews Ph.D., F.C.C.M., D (ABMM), earned his Ph.D. in Experimental Medicine
(Infectious Diseases) from the University of British Columbia and completed his clinical
microbiology training at the University of Toronto. He currently serves as Director of Medical
Microbiology at Canadian Blood Services, where he oversees transmissible disease testing,
infectious disease surveillance, and laboratory operations. With over 200 peer-reviewed
publications and extensive experience in microbiology, Dr. Drews has led and collaborated on
multiple CIHR-funded research projects and serves as a member of the CIHR College of
Reviewers. His prior roles include Consultant Microbiologist at Alberta’s Provincial Laboratory
for Public Health and Head of Molecular Diagnostics at Public Health Ontario Laboratories. Dr.
Drews is also a Professor in Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at the University of Alberta and
a member of the Women and Children’s Health Research Institute (WCHRI). He continues to
teach and mentor students and trainees in infectious diseases and clinical microbiology.
Dr. Hala Aldahshan
Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences
College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University
Supervisor, Biomedical Animal Research Unit (BARU)
Dr. Hala Aldahshan is an Assistant Professor at King Saud University in Riyadh, where she also serves as the Head of the Biomedical Animal Research Unit (BARU) at the College of Applied Medical Sciences. She earned her PhD in Cell and Gene Therapy from University College London (UCL), with research conducted at the Zayed Centre for Research into Rare Disease in Children – Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health. Her doctoral work focused on the development of innovative, CAR-T cell therapies for T-cell malignancies using CRISPR-Cas9 and base editing technologies.
Her academic and research interests center on the fields of cell and gene therapy, immunotherapy, and biomarker discovery, with a special focus on addressing locally relevant health challenges. Dr. Aldahshan is involved in several ongoing studies and collaborative efforts aimed at advancing personalized medicine and contributing to national research priorities.
Dr. Evan Bloch is an Professor of Pathology at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where he serves as the Associate Director of Transfusion Medicine and Medical Director of the Apheresis Service; he also holds a joint appointment in International Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Originally from South Africa, Dr. Bloch’s research is focused on global health and transfusion medicine. He has a particular interest in the interplay with infectious diseases, given that transfusion transmitted infection remains a metric of suboptimal policies and practices in low and low-middle income countries.
President of Saudi Society of Transfusion Medicine & Services
Saudi Society of Transfusion Medicine & Services
Prof. Salwa Hindawi
President of Saudi Society of Transfusion Medicine & Services
Prof. Salwa I. Hindawi has her FRCPath Fellowship from the Royal College of Pathologists,
London. CTM RCPE Certificate in Transfusion Medicine, the Royal College of Physicians,
Edinburgh, Scotland. Professor of Hematology and Transfusion Medicine, President of Saudi
Society of Transfusion Medicine, President of Saudi Society of Friends of Thalassemia &Sickle
Cell Anaemia. Part-time Transfusion Medicine Consultant at the Health Support Services Center,
Ministry of Health Riyadh. Expert Member Advisory Panel on Blood Safety WHO. Member of
AABB Committee for Fundamental Standard, Member of Global Blood Safety & Hemovigilance
ISBT working parties. Member of Editorial Board of Vox Sanguinis Journal. An AABB Assessor
and CAP inspector. She has more than 30 years of experience in blood Transfusion Medicine and
a lot of publication and engaged in many researches, Scientific Committees Member, Chairperson
and speaker in many international and national Conference.
Ikram Ben Amor is a professor of Haematobiology at the Medical School of Sfax at the University
of Sfax. She is currently the Director of the Regional Blood Transfusion Centre in Sfax, Tunisia.
Her clinical and research interests include immunohematology, perinatal transfusion, transfusion
safety, haemovigilance systems. Prof. Ben Amor has also an interest to cell therapy and she
actively contributed to the implementation of haematopoietic stem cell autograft in southern
Tunisia. She is Vice President of the Association of Hematologists of the South Tunisia (ADHES)
and an active member of the working group on Transfusion within the Tunisian Haematology
Society. She also serves on the Technical Commission on Haemobiology at the Ministry of Health
and on the Stem Cell Transplant Committee at Hedi Chaker Hospital in Sfax. Prof. Ben Amor has
contributed to numerous peer-reviewed publications and regularly participates in national and
international scientific conferences and involved in quality management initiatives.
Hiromi Sakai received Ph.D. (D.Eng.) in 1994 from Waseda Univ., with a thesis titled “Hemoglobin-vesicles (HbV) as a molecular assembly”. In 1996-1998 he studied at Dept. of Bioengineering, UC San Diego, and evaluated the microvascular responses to HbV injection. After coming back to Tokyo, he studied stabilization and biocompatibility of HbV and evaluated in vivo safety and efficacy. In 2006 he received Ph.D. (D.Med.Sci.) from Keio Univ. School of Medicine. Dr. Sakai was a Lecturer and an Associate Professor at Waseda Univ. in 1998-2009, and at Waseda Bioscience Research Institute in Singapore in 2009-2013. From 2013 he has been the Professor of Chemistry, Nara Medical University. He is the chief investigator of the artificial red cells project, which has been supported by the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development: AMED since 2015. From 2019 he is the fourth president of the Society of Blood Substitutes, Japan.
Professor of Pathology, Medicine, and Epidemiology
Johns Hopkins University
Prof. Aaron Tobian
Professor of Pathology, Medicine, and Epidemiology
Aaron Tobian, MD, PhD, is a Professor of Pathology, Medicine, and Epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University and Director of the Transfusion Medicine Division and Clinical Laboratories at Johns Hopkins Hospital. He also serves as Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs in the Department of Pathology.
Dr. Tobian is active in both clinical service and research, with a focus on transfusion medicine and global health. He has published over 400 peer-reviewed articles in journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, and Lancet. His work has been featured in major media outlets including NBC Today Show, BBC World Service, and National Public Radio.
He served as President of the Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies (AABB) in 2023-2024 and serves as associate editor or on editorial boards for TRANSFUSION, Journal of Clinical Apheresis, and UpToDate. He is founding Editor-in-Chief of Transfusion News. Dr. Tobian earned his MD and PhD from Case Western Reserve University.
Dr. Mohammed Alsahli is an Associate Professor of Hematology at the College of Applied
Medical Sciences, Qassim University, and a Consultant Hematologist at Qassim University
Medical City, Saudi Arabia. He also serves as Dean of the College of Applied Medical Sciences
at Buraydah Private Colleges. Dr. Alsahli earned his PhD in Hemostasis and Thrombosis from the
University of Leicester, UK, and has published over 70 peer-reviewed articles. In addition to his
academic and clinical leadership, Dr. Alsahli is the Chairman of the Board of Qassim Health
Services Association (Seha) and the Chairman of the Scientific Committee at both the Blood Banks
Friends Charity (Damy) and Seha. His research and community engagement aim to translate
scientific innovation into measurable improvements in public health, with focus on enhancing
voluntary blood donation and community-based health services. Dr. Alsahli has participated in
numerous national and international conferences, contributing to knowledge exchange and
collaborative progress.
Professor and Medical Director of Blood Bank- Chief Medical Officer
University of Minnesota Hospital - AABB
Dr. Claudia Cohn
Professor and Medical Director of Blood Bank- Chief Medical Officer
Dr. Cohn earned her PhD in Immunology and Infectious Diseases from the Johns Hopkins University (currently the Bloomberg School of Public Health) and subsequently earned her MD at Louisiana State University. After finishing her Transfusion Medicine fellowship at Blood Centers of the Pacific/University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Cohn joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota, in Minneapolis, where she is a Professor of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology and serves as Medical Director of the Blood Bank. Dr. Cohn is also the Chief Medical Officer of the AABB (Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies) and was the Editor-in-Chief of the 20th and 21st editions of the AABB Technical Manual. Dr. Cohn’s major interests include platelet support for stem cell transplant patients, hemovigilance, and appropriate use of blood components.
