Rad Source Launches AccuTag™ Blood Irradiation Indicators Ahead of AABB 2026

White-to-blue indicator gives blood banks visual confirmation of the 15 Gy minimum at a 25 Gy target dose, on display at Booth 1314

BUFORD, Ga., Oct. 14, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rad Source Technologies, Inc. (Rad Source^®), the global leader in biological x-ray solutions for life sciences, today announced the launch of AccuTag™ blood irradiation indicators, which it will showcase at the AABB 2026 Annual Meeting, Oct. 17 to 19 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta. Designed for blood banks, transfusion services and hospital irradiation programs, AccuTag gives clinical staff a quick, visual way to confirm that a minimum of 15 Gy has been delivered when blood is irradiated to a 25 Gy target.

FDA recommendations specify a minimum dose of 15 Gy and a target dose of 25 Gy to help prevent transfusion-associated graft-versus-host disease (TA-GVHD). AccuTag is a radiochromic indicator label that changes from white to blue to indicate that a blood product received at least 15 Gy, and it was built to support that standard.

Simple by Design: White to Blue

Staff attach AccuTag to the blood bag, blood product or syringe before irradiation. The central dot starts out white and turns blue after exposure to x-ray or gamma irradiation. After irradiation, staff check that the center dot is as dark as or darker than the light blue reference color. There are no extra steps and no extra equipment.

Built to Confirm Dose Delivery

AccuTag's radiochromic central dot is engineered to indicate a minimum of 15 Gy at a 25 Gy target dose, aligning with FDA recommendations and facility protocols.

That design is the subject of a poster Rad Source is presenting at AABB 2026. Researchers irradiated AccuTag and two other commercially available 15 Gy blood irradiation indicators in a calibrated RS^® 3400 x-ray blood irradiator at 10, 15, 25, 50 and 75 Gy, plus an unirradiated (0 Gy) control, with each indicator placed in the central region of a blood phantom. AccuTag exhibited a progressive, dose-dependent visual response across the evaluated dose range, with color changes distinguishable between under-irradiation (10 Gy), the FDA-recommended dose range (15 Gy minimum and 25 Gy target) and higher-dose conditions (50 to 75 Gy). The other two indicators confirmed irradiation exposure but did not provide distinguishable dose-level verification, consistent with their intended design and labeling.

AccuTag is a semi-quantitative indicator. It shows that irradiation occurred at the intended level but is not a precise dosimeter, and regular maintenance of the irradiator is recommended to ensure consistent results.

“Many indicators are designed only to indicate exposure, not to verify a specific delivered dose. In our evaluation, AccuTag showed a progressive visual response from the 15 Gy minimum through the 25 Gy target, in line with FDA recommendations, so staff can see at a glance whether a product has reached the intended dose range,” said Justin Czerniawski, PhD, Vice President of Research & Development at Rad Source Technologies.

“AccuTag's white-to-blue dot gives clinical teams visible confirmation at the point of care, and the data we are presenting at AABB shows why that matters. Paired with the RS 3400, it gives transfusion services a more complete irradiation workflow,” said George Terry, Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Rad Source Technologies.

See AccuTag at AABB 2026

Visit Rad Source at Booth 1314 to see AccuTag and order samples. Rad Source will also present the poster “Evaluation of blood irradiation indicators for dose verification and FDA recommendation compliance” at the AABB Meet the Poster Author session on Sunday, Oct. 18, from noon to 1 p.m. ET. Authored by Justin Czerniawski, PhD, of Rad Source Technologies, the study evaluated indicator response across clinically relevant doses against FDA recommendations and the AABB Standards for Blood Banks and Transfusion Services (35th ed.).

Learn more about AccuTag blood irradiation indicators at https://info.radsource.com/accutag  

About Rad Source^®

Rad Source Technologies, Inc. is the global leader in biological x-ray solutions for life sciences. Its portfolio includes the RS^® 3400 Blood Irradiator, the RS^® 2400 Sterile Insect Irradiator, the RS^® 2000 Biological Irradiator and the QUASTAR^® x-ray technology platform.

SOURCE: Rad Source Technologies, Inc.

Rad Source^®, RS^®, QUASTAR^® and AccuTag™ are trademarks or registered trademarks of Rad Source Technologies, Inc.

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CONTACT: Media Contact: Nicole Bailey Phone: 678-765-7900 Email: nbailey@radsource.com