Massive transfusion protocols (MTPs) in cancer patients

The management of soldiers with massive injury in the battleground and the blood support needed for these patients is an area of constant progress and led to the development of protocols to correct the rapid changes leading to death after the battle trauma. As a result there has been a standardization and timely release of blood components in defined ratios which are called massive transfusion protocols (MTPs). The civilian hospitals learned from the military experience, and MTPs are currently used in the emergency centers and operating rooms of hospitals. However, not all MTPs are created equal, and there is institutional variation, according to the type of patients requiring MTPs. There is still controversy around the ratios of blood components to be used and what population of patients benefit from the activation of MTPs.