To investigate the possible efficacy of washed platelet transfusions in preventing platelet refractoriness, transfusion reactions, bleeding and improving long term survival in adult acute leukemia, we performed a randomized trial in patients receiving either washed, leukoreduced, ABO identical platelet and red cell transfusions compared with our standard protocol of leukoreduced, ABO identical transfusions. Here, ABO is linked to acute leukemia.