ABSTRACT
This paper briefly reviewed blood substitutes, focusing on the background, history of research and development(R&D), types, functions, characteristics, the indications that will be mainly targeted in clinical, and their special status and role in the future, especially in the rescue of war/trauma patients using hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers(HBOCs). Additionally, the authors put forward unique insights and suggestions on some key concepts and R&D bottlenecks in the development of HBOCs through combining the authors′ own R&D experience for decades with efforts and lessons given by many scholars in this field at home and abroad, hoping to provide some new inspirations and ideas for colleagues to innovate and develop blood substitutes to benefit the clinical as soon as possible.