Overview
Dr. Marianne Yee is a pediatric hematologist with clinical research focus in sickle cell disease (SCD) and transfusion medicine. Children and adults with severe complications of SCD such as stroke require monthly blood transfusions to prevent disease complications. Chronic transfusion therapy (CTT) provides healthy red blood cells (RBCs) and suppresses ongoing damage from sickle red blood cells. However, despite monthly transfusions, some patients continue to have progressive sickle cell complications or stroke. The success of CTT is dependent on the overall survival of each transfusion received. Factors that may impact transfusion survival may be related to the patient’s immune system and spleen activity or to the blood donor’s RBCs.
In collaboration with Emory's Center for Transfusion and Cellular Therapies (CTCT), Dr. Yee has an active program for biotin labeling allogeneic RBC transfusions to study transfusion effectiveness in individuals with SCD and transfusion dependent hemoglobinopathies.
- Yee ME, Lai KW, Bakshi N, Grossman JK, Jaggi P, Maillis A, Wang YF, Jerris RC, Lane PA, Yildirim I. Bloodstream Infections in Children with Sickle Cell Disease: 2010-2019. Pediatrics 2022;149(1):e2021051892. PMID: 34913059
- Wade J*, Yee ME*, Easley KA, Pahz S, Butler H, Zerra PE, Josephson CD, Fasano RM. Procedural Adverse Events in Pediatric Patients with Sickle Cell Disease Undergoing Chronic Automated Red Cell Exchange. Transfusion. 2022 Mar;62(3):584-593. PMID: 35072269 *Co-first authors.
- Yee ME, Francis RO, Luban NL, Easley KA, Lough CM, Roback JD, Josephson CD, Fasano RM. Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency is more prevalent in Duffy-null red blood cell transfusion in sickle cell disease. Transfusion 2022 Mar;62(3):551-555. PMID: 35044697.
- O’Brien S, Badawy S, Rotz S, Shah M, Makarski J, Bercovitz R, Hogan M, Luchtman-Jones L, Panepinto J, Priola G, Witmer C, Wolfson J, Yee M, Hicks L. The ASH-ASPHO Choosing Wisely Campaign: five hematologic tests and treatments to question. Blood Advances. 2022 Jan 25;6(2):679-685.PMID: 35072726.
- Winer JC, Yee ME, Ataga KI, Lebensburger JD, Zahr RS. Patients with Sickle Cell Disease who develop End Stage Kidney Disease continue to experience poor survival, a 19-year USRDS Study. British Journal of Haematology, 2022 Oct 3, Online ahead of Print. PMID: 36191963
- Weaver MS, Yee MEM, Lawrence CE, Fasano RM. Requests for Directed Blood Donations. Pediatrics 2023 April 1;151(4):e2022058183. PMID: 36897227.
- Yee MEM, Fasano RM. Novel approaches to measure transfusion effectiveness. Curr Opin Hematol. 2023 Nov 1;30(6):230-236. PMID: 37594015.
- Adamkiewicz T, Yee MEM, Thomas S, Tunali A, Lai KW, Omole F, Lane P, Yildirim P. Pneumococcal Infections in Children with Sickle Cell Disease Before and After Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccines. Blood Advances. 2023 Nov 14;7(21):6751-6761. PMID: 37698500.
- Israelyan N, Vege S, Friedman DF, Zhang Z, Uter S, Fasano RM, Yee M, Piccone C, Kelly S, Hankins JS, Zheng Y, Westhoff CM, Chou ST. RH genotypes and red cell alloimmunization rate in chronically transfused patients with sickle cell disease: A multisite study in the USA. Transfusion 2024 Jan 30. Online ahead of Print. PMID: 38289184.
NCI/NHLBI: K23HL146904 – 04/01/2020-03/21/2025
Kinetics of Red Blood Cell Clearance in Chronically Transfused Children with Sickle Cell Disease
Role: PI