The BSH Guidelines Official Podcast

During this podcast, Anna Godfrey discusses the Investigation and management of thrombocytosis without JAK2, CALR or MPL mutations Guideline, published in 2025.

During this podcast, Piers Patten and Renata Walewska discuss the Guideline for the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, published in 2025.

During this podcast, Dr Austin Kulasekararaj and Dr Lugain Abdalla discuss the Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of adult aplastic anaemia, published in 2024.

In this episode, Dr Charles Percy discusses the joint British Society for Haematology and United Kingdom Haemophilia Centre Doctors' Organisation Guideline on 'Laboratory investigation and clinical management of acquired coagulation factor inhibitors', published in 2025. 

Dr Tracey Chan and Dr Dima El-Sharkawi discuss the Updated guidelines for the diagnosis and management of tumour lysis syndrome in adults and children, published in 2025.

Dr Matthew Wilson, Dr Sridhar Chaganti and Dr Wendy Osborne discuss the Clinical management of bispecific antibody therapy for lymphoma Good Practice Paper, published in 2025. 

Dr Eyre is a consultant haematologist specialising in lymphoid malignancies in Oxford.  He has completed an MD Doctorate Thesis in 2017.  He is an investigator on several national lymphoid trials and has published over 170 peer-review articles on lymphoma and CLL.  He is the chair of the low-grade lymphoma clinical trial research group and a core member several lymphoma study groups.  He is a member of the BSH guideline writing groups for various lymphoma subtypes and the lead author for the new ESMO Lymphoma guidelines.  ​He is also an Associate Editor at the British Journal of Haematology.

Podcast recording by James Griffin on the Guideline: Apheresis procedures for the treatment of patients and for the collection of cellular therapy products.

Dr Deepa J. Arachchillage and Dr Jenny Tam present a review of the Guidelines on the investigation and management of antiphospholipid syndrome. Published: 04 August 2025

Dr Matthew Wilson and Dr Kate Cwynarski discuss the Central nervous system prophylaxis in large B-cell lymphoma Good Practice Paper, published in 2024.

Professor Christopher Fox, Dr Sridhar Chaganti and Dr Bernard Maybury discuss the Management of relapsed or refractory large B-cell lymphoma Guideline, published in 2025.

This podcast is the first of a series of three recordings of the Lymphoma Special Interest Group (SIG) Education Session at the 2025 BSH Annual Scientific Meeting.  The Lymphoma SIG is delighted to share talks from three great speakers with the wider audience.   In this recording, Dr David Lewis discusses first-line treatment for mantle cell lymphoma in 2025, focusing on three main themes: 1) the emerging use of Bruton’s tyrosine kinase inhibitors (BTKis) in first-line treatment, 2) the role of autologous stem cell transplant, and 3) the clinical utility of minimal residual disease (MRD).   Dr David Lewis is a Consultant Haematologist at the University Hospitals Plymouth and an Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Plymouth.  He is the Chief Investigator of the ENRICH trial – a randomised, open-label study of Rituximab/Ibrutinib versus. Rituximab/Chemotherapy in older patients with untreated mantle cell lymphoma.

Dr Cathy Burton chaired the “Top Abstracts in Lymphoma” session at BSH 2025.  In this episode, she shares with us the highlights from this session.   Dr Burton is a Consultant Haematologist at St James’s University Hospital, Leeds, specializing in Lymphoma and Diagnostics. She is heavily engaged in translational research in lymphoma and is Chair of the Hodgkin lymphoma study group, Deputy Chair of the Lymphoma Science study group and a member of the UK Lymphoma Research Group. She has recently been involved in writing the diffuse large B cell lymphoma guidelines and is the chair of the BSH Lymphoma Special Interest Group.

Dr Dima El-Sharkawi is a Consultant Haematologist at the Royal Marsden Hospital in Sutton. Her special interests are in CLL, rare leukaemias and lymphomas as well as early phase trials and drug development. She has been an investigator on a number of clinical research studies in these disease groups. She is clinical lead of the Specialist Integrated Haematological Malignancy Diagnostic Services at The Royal Marsden.  She is a member of the UK lymphoma research group and CLL trials groups and has co-authored national guidelines for the diagnosis and management of T cell lymphoma and Waldenstrom macroglobulinaemia.

Dr Tracey Chan and Dr Jennifer Pinney discuss the Diagnosis and management of monoclonal gammopathy of renal significance Good Practice Paper, published in January 2025.

In this episode, Dr Sridhar Chaganti shares with us the highlights in large B-cell lymphoma from BSH 2025, including real-world experience in the use of bispecific antibodies and the recent NICE approval of Lisocel as second line treatment.   Dr Chaganti is a Consultant Haemato-oncologist at the University Hospital in Birmingham, with an interest in lymphomas, ALL, stem cell transplantation and immune effector cell therapies including CART cell therapy.  He is the chair of the high-grade lymphoma study group and co-chairs the national CAR-T panel.

Presenters: Sean Platton (Consultant Biomedical Scientist) and Peter Baker (Clinical Scientist and the Laboratory Lead for Haemostasis)   Measurement of heparin, direct oral anti-coagulants and other non-coumarin anti-coagulants and their effects on haemostasis assays: A British Society for Haematology Guideline This guideline aims to update healthcare professionals working in the UK on the measurement of anti-coagulants (other than coumarins) currently licensed for use in the UK, and their effects on laboratory assays (Table 1). It provides recommendations based on the body of literature produced since the previous guidance published in 2014.1 Direct factor (F)XIa- and direct FXIIa-inhibiting anti-coagulants are at various stages of development but not yet licensed, so are not discussed in this guideline.2 The recent guidelines from the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis Scientific Standardization Committee (ISTH/SSC) on the nomenclature to be used when describing non-vitamin K anti-coagulation3 are followed. Some anti-coagulants, such as unfractionated heparin (UFH) and argatroban, have been in clinical use for decades. Laboratory monitoring to guide dose adjustments has been with the widely available activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT). However, the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the wide variability in the sensitivity of different APTT reagents in patients with acute illness, emphasising the need for accessible and cost-effective anti-FIIa and anti-FXa assays for routine monitoring. The introduction of specific anti-FIIa or anti-FXa-based assays has provided a means to quantitate plasma drug concentrations of the newer fixed-dose FIIa inhibitors (FIIaI) and FXa inhibitors (FXaI). When used according to licence, monitoring these direct oral anti-coagulants (DOACs) is not required, but measuring drug concentration can add value in some circumstances (Table 2). As neither drug concentration nor dose-adjustment based on the measured concentration has yet been shown to affect efficacy or safety, it is incorrect to refer to a therapeutic range. In this manuscript, the term ‘expected range’ is used to acknowledge this limitation. There are many reports in the literature about the effects of anti-coagulants on measurable parameters of haemostasis. Lack of awareness of these effects, which are variable depending on anti-coagulant, timing of sampling and reagents, can cause confusion and delay diagnosis and care. Table 3 gives a broad overview of the types of impact on laboratory assays that may be seen. All assays described must be used in accordance with requirements of ISO15189.

In this episode, Professor Graham Collins shares with us the highlights in Hodgkin lymphoma from BSH 2025.  He takes us through the ECHELON-1 trial, which led to the recent NICE approval of Brentuximab-AVD as a frontline treatment option for advanced stage Hodgkin lymphoma.

Professor Graham Collins discusses the management of primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma, from initial treatment considerations to the management of relapsed disease.   Professor Collins is a Consultant Haematologist and the lymphoma lead clinician at the Oxford Cancer and Haematology Centre.  He has particular interests in Hodgkin and high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma and he chairs the national CAR-T panel for lymphoma.   Please note that since the recording of this podcast in December 2024, NICE has granted approval for the use of Liso-cel as a second-line treatment option in primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma.

Dr Sridhar Chaganti discusses the use of bispecific T-cell engagers (BITE’s) in large B-cell lymphoma.   Dr Chaganti is a consultant haematologist at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. He has a PhD in cancer studies from the University of Birmingham. His research interest is Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) and lymphomas. His special interests are in haematological malignancies, lymphomas, stem cell transplantation and cellular therapies.

Dr Nikesh (Nik) Chavda discusses supportive care in lymphoma. Dr Chavda is a haematology consultant at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston, with an interest in B-cell malignancies, cellular therapies and histiocytic disorders.

Dr Duncan Murray discusses mycosis fungoides and sezary syndrome. Dr Murray completed his PhD at the University of Birmingham, looking at the interaction between the immune system and malignant T cells in skin lymphoma. He finds the interaction between a "good" and "bad" T cell fascinating. He has used multiple single-cell laboratory techniques to tease apart the two populations (including V-beta antibodies, single-cell T-cell receptor (TCR) and ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequencing and mass cytometry). Skin lymphoma is an unusual disease in that key determinants of the patient's outcome sit very close together. Both anatomically and in phenotype. His current work focuses on what we can learn from high-dimensional single-cell data and the bioinformatic process to assist this.

Dr Matthew Ahearne is a consultant haematologist at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust. His main clinical and research focus is on T-cell lymphomas. Dr Ahearne is Deputy Chair of the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) T-cell lymphoma working group and an NCRI Lymphoma Science sub-group member.

Dr Sridhar Chaganti discusses the current management of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD), including subtypes, prognostic factors and the current treatment options. He explores the role of immunotherapy, cytotoxic agents and the emerging field of cellular therapies in this group of patients. Dr Chaganti is a consultant haematologist at University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust. He has a PhD in cancer studies from the University of Birmingham. His research interest is Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) and lymphomas. His special interests are in haematologic malignancies, lymphomas and stem cell transplantation.

Dr Aisling Barrett discusses the guideline on Assessment of fitness for bleomycin use and management of bleomycin pulmonary toxicity in patients with classical Hodgkin lymphoma    

Professor Martin Kaiser & Dr Ceri Bygrave discuss the Advanced imaging for earlier diagnosis and morbidity prevention in multiple myeloma guideline.    

Professor Martin Kaiser and Dr Matthew Jenner discuss the BSH Good Practice Paper for the diagnosis and initial treatment of transplant-eligible high-risk myeloma patients, published in July 2024.

Dr Amma Kyei Mensah, Dr Sarah Nicolle and Dr Farrukh Shah discuss the BSH Guideline for the management of conception and pregnancy in thalassaemia syndromes, published in 2024.      

Professor Guy Pratt discusses the investigation, diagnosis and management of smouldering myeloma. This podcast is based on the British Society for Haematology’s 2024 Good Practice Paper, Diagnosis and management of smouldering myeloma. 

This guidance update from the BSH is focussed primarily on non-surgical invasive procedures, simply termed ‘procedures’ in this document, with the primary objective of giving pragmatic advice where evidence is limited. This guidance also aims to reduce unnecessary laboratory testing, inappropriate use of blood products and unnecessary delays in therapeutic procedures.1 It should be read in conjunction with the Interventional Radiology (IR) procedure bleeding risk guidance produced by the British Society of Interventional Radiology (BSIR) and the BSH.2 Recommendations are predominantly based on evidence from adult patients and therefore may not be applicable to neonates or very young children.

Podcast by Dr Donal P. McLornan on The management of myelofibrosis.    

Since the last version of the BCSH (British Committee for Standards in Haematology) Guidelines for Specification, implementation and management of  Information Technology (IT) in hospital transfusion laboratories was published1 there has been continued development in IT applications for use in transfusion medicine. IT has made a major contribution to blood safety throughout the transfusion chain, and there is increasing use of IT solutions to allow laboratories to meet some of the challenges of the Blood Safety and Quality Regulations (F24) SI 50/2005 (as amended) legislation 2, such as traceability. These guidelines update those published in 2014, to reflect new developments. Further requirements such as the provision of extensively genotyped matched red cell units have also been addressed.  

A podcast recording by Dr Deepa J. Arachchillage on the guideline: Diagnosis and management of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia: Third edition.      

The objective of this podcast presented by Kim Linton and Renata Walewska is to provide healthcare professionals with clear guidance on the diagnosis and management of patients with marginal zone lymphoma (MZL).  

Guideline on the Investigation and management of a raised serum ferritin: A podcast recording of a conversation between Dr Jenny Tam and Dr Wayne Thomas.

Antenatal screening/testing of pregnant women should be carried out according to the guidelines of the National Health Service (NHS) Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme. Newborn screening and, when necessary, follow-up testing and referral, should be carried out according to the guidelines of the NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme. All babies under 1 year of age arriving in the United Kingdom should be offered screening for sickle cell disease (SCD). Preoperative screening for SCD should be carried out in patients from ethnic groups in which there is a significant prevalence of the condition. Emergency screening with a sickle solubility test must always be followed by definitive analysis. Laboratories performing antenatal screening should utilise methods that are capable of detecting significant variants and are capable of quantitating haemoglobins A2 and F at the cut-off points required by the national antenatal screening programme. The laboratory must ensure a provisional report is available for antenatal patients within three working days from sample receipt.

The objective of this guideline is to provide healthcare professionals with clear guidance on the diagnosis and management of patients with mantle cell lymphoma.

This Good Practice Paper podcast provides recommendations for the diagnosis, risk stratification and management of the monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS). It describes the recently recognised entity of the monoclonal gammopathy of clinical significance (MGCS), and recommends how it should be managed. The potential for targeted population screening for MGUS is also discussed.  

Haematological management of major haemorrhage: A podcast recording of a conversation between Prof Simon Stanworth and Dr Heidi Doughty.

A BSH Guideline on the Anticoagulant management of pregnant individuals with mechanical heart valves presented by Dr Will Lester.

Guideline session at EHA Conference 2022 on The Use of Next-generation Sequencing in the Diagnosis of Rare Inherited Anaemias: A Joint BSH/EHA Good Practice Paper

Secondary central nervous system (CNS) lymphoma (SCNSL) refers to lymphoma that has spread to the CNS concurrently with, or following treatment for, systemic lymphoma. There are three clinically distinct scenarios: Synchronous CNS and systemic lymphoma at initial presentation (treatment-naïve; TN-SCNSL), CNS relapse without recurrent systemic lymphoma (relapsed isolated CNS lymphoma; RI-SCNSL). Relapsed concomitant systemic and CNS disease following treatment for systemic lymphoma (RC-SCNSL). CNS lymphoma (CNSL) is associated with inferior outcomes, which may be attributed to several factors: poor CNS penetrance of chemotherapeutics, including RCHOP (rituximab, cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisolone),1 impaired neurocognitive function and patient performance status (PS) contributing to increased treatment toxicity,2, 3 and recurrent genetic aberrations conferring treatment resistance.4-6 The rarity and heterogeneity of SCNSL also limits the evidence base for treatment recommendations, with poor outcomes potentially attributable at least in part to lack of optimised treatment protocols. This good practice paper focuses on diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common SCNSL subtype. It covers diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of care for the three SCNSL scenarios and multiply relapsed SCNSL. Treatment recommendations are framed by patient fitness and treatment intent.

This guideline updates and widens the scope of the previous British Society for Haematology (BSH) Clinical guidelines for testing for heritable thrombophilia1 to include both heritable and acquired thrombophilia. The term thrombophilia is generally used to describe hereditary and/or acquired conditions associated with an increased predisposition to thrombosis. Heritable thrombophilia refers to genetic disorders of specific haemostatic proteins. These guidelines focus only on the factors that are identified from laboratory testing and therefore exclude disorders such as cancer, inflammatory conditions and obesity that are associated with thrombosis through multiple mechanisms.

Audio commentary from Dr Mike Dennis on the good practice paper - management of older patients with frailty and acute myeloid leukaemia. 

Audio commentary by Dr George Follows.

British Society for Haematology Annual Scientific Meeting Guidelines Session 2022   Dr Suzy Morton on the Good Practice Paper Cytomegalovirus serological testing in potential allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients.   Dr Suzy Morton is a Consultant in clinical haematology and blood transfusion at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, University Hospitals Birmingham and NHS Blood and Transplant. She is the transfusion representative on the West Midlands Haematology Specialty Training Committee and the educational lead for haematology SpRs at QEHB. Suzy is a transfusion representative on the BSH Education committee.