The main objective of this project is to set up the good practices applied to tissues and cells (T&C) preparation processes and patient follow-up procedures, to ensure their safe and effective implementation.
The outputs of this project will provide tools for assessing and verifying the quality, promote safety and assure efficacy of therapies with human tissues, Hematopoietic Stem Cells (HSC) and Assisted Reproductive Technologies (ART), addressing mainly to the implementation of novel T&C preparation processes and clinical indications, but also to the need of retrospective studies where weaknesses or insufficient safety data currently exist.
Recommendations will be forwarded to Tissue Establishments (TE) and Organizations Responsible for Human Application (ORHA), as the main actors in the process of validation and designing T&C preparation processes and patient follow-up according to a clinical indication.
This project aim to define the threshold of novelty, including definition of the factors that should be considered to determine the scope and depth of the clinical follow-up studies needed. The scope and extent of the recommended studies will be determined on the basis of a risk based approach performed taking into account factors such as the novelty of the product/preparation process/clinical indication, and its technical complexity.
A T&C Database of products, preparation procedures, clinical applications and their current status of authorisation and implementation will be established, working as a starting point for determining the ‘novelty’ of processes/therapies by TEs and ORHAs, and allowing the use of established processes/therapies by any centre that strictly follows the same procedure/clinical procedure/indication.
This project also aims to define a “GTP’s management model” that could provide impetus for future standards harmonisation and promotion, and allow the establishment of European accreditation and training programs for TE.
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Disease of the cornea (the transparent layer covering the front of the eye) is the second cause of blindness worldwide. The cornea is the most transplanted tissue with over 100,000 corneas transplanted annually. In Europe an estimated 30,000 corneal transplants are performed each year.
Currently there is no harmonisation of information across the European Union on the numbers or origins of the scarce corneas tissue available for transplant, the optimum procedure for transplant and the visual outcome and quality of life of corneal transplant patients.
The ESCRS in 2006 with the support of the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers pioneered an online Quality Registry of the outcomes of cataract and refractive surgeries (EUREQUO). ESCRS continues to support this Registry and has currently a database of over 2,000,000 surgeries.
ESCRS proposes to extend this platform to create a registry of corneal transplantation surgeries in Europe. The European Cornea and Cell Transplantation Network (ECCTR) will link three existing registries and recruit additional centres of excellence and eye banks to contribute data on availability of corneal tissue, methods of transplantation, and visual outcomes of surgery.
The focus of our consortium is on bringing added value and making a positive impact on one of the priority actions set out in the annual Work Programme for 2015; contributing to the fourth overall objective:” To build a common assessment methodology to allow academics, health professionals and authorities to assess and verify safety, quality and efficacy of (new) transplantation therapies and/or other types of clinical applications of human tissues and cells (e.g. assisted reproductive technologies).”
After the completion of this action the ECCTR will have all the data necessary to develop European Guidelines for Corneal Transplant Surgery to better utilise scarce cornea tissue ensure European self-sufficiency and reduce patient waiting lists.
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Over five million patients in the EU annually receive transfusions or transplantations of substances of human origin (SoHO): blood components, plasma derived medicines, tissues & (stem) cells, germ cells for assisted reproductive technologies and organs. These treatments depend heavily on the availability of SoHO obtained from more than 13 million donors. Obviously, donor availability is the most vulnerable link in assuring these treatments.

Procedures to collect SoHO, including donor selection and the actual collection or procurement, are regulated in the EU by several directives. In addition, the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines & Health Care (EDQM) publishes recommendations (Guides) relating to the preparation, use and quality assurance of SoHO forming a basis for standard operating procedures. From this, one could infer that practice throughout Europe is harmonised. However, implementation of the directives and Guides in Member states has resulted in diverging donor selection and protection policies. Expert opinions, lacking quantitative risk-based selection criteria, and prompting a one-size-fits-all approach, have in fact lead to inflexibility and inconsistency.

TRANSPOSE aims at a structured, alternative approach to construct risk-based Guidelines for the selection and protection of donors. To this end, TRANSPOSE will involve a massive pool of experts and take stock of current practices and scientific insights.

TRANSPOSE may facilitate the process of revising related EU Directives. Moreover, the developed guiding principles and Donor Selection & Protection Guidelines will assist EU member states to implement policies in a consistent and clear-cut way. Finally, a standard Donor Health Questionnaire with carefully guided local/regional/national customization will become available, which can be used widely and will enable comparisons between Member States on the prevalence of certain risks and risky behaviours throughout Europe.

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