Taurolidine demonstrates some anti-tumor properties, with positive results seen in early-stage clinical investigations using the drug to treat gastrointestinal malignancies and tumors of the central nervous system. [ 23 ]  More recently, it has been found to exert antineoplastic activity. Taurolidine induces cancer cell death through a variety of mechanisms. Even now, all the antineoplastic pathways it employs are not completely elucidated. It has been shown to enhance apoptosis, inhibit angiogenesis, reduce tumor adherence, downregulate pro-inflammatory cytokine release, and stimulate anticancer immune regulation following surgical trauma. Apoptosis is activated through both a mitochondrial cytochrome-c-dependent mechanism and an extrinsic direct pathway. A lot of in vitro and animal data support taurolidine's tumoricidal action. [ 24 ] [ 25 ] [ 26 ]  Taurolidine has been used as an antimicrobial agent in the clinical setting since the 1970s and thus far appears nontoxic. The nontoxic nature of taurolidine makes it a favorable option compared with current chemotherapeutic regimens. Few published clinical studies exist evaluating the role of taurolidine as a chemotherapeutic agent. The literature lacks a gold-standard level 1 randomized clinical trial to evaluate taurolidine's potential antineoplastic benefits. However, these trials are currently underway. Such randomized control studies are vital to clarify the role of taurolidine in modern cancer treatment. [ 21 ] [ 2 ]


Taurolidine/heparin , sold under the brand name  Defencath , is a  fixed-dose combination   catheter lock solution  used for central venous catheter instillation. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]  It contains  taurolidine , a  thiadiazinane  antimicrobial; and  heparin , an  anti-coagulant . Its use is limited to people with  kidney failure  receiving chronic  hemodialysis  through a  central venous catheter . [ 1 ] [ 2 ]


The most frequently reported adverse reactions include hemodialysis catheter malfunction, hemorrhage/bleeding, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, musculoskeletal chest pain, and thrombocytopenia. [ 2 ]


Taurolidine/heparin was approved for medical use in the United States in November 2023. [ 2 ] [ 3 ]  The US  Food and Drug Administration  (FDA) considers it to be a  first-in-class medication . [ 4 ]


Taurolidine/heparin is  indicated  to reduce catheter-related bloodstream infections in adults with kidney failure who are receiving chronic hemodialysis through a central venous catheter. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 5 ]  It is indicated in this limited and specific patient population. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]


Taurolidine/heparin was studied in a single, randomized, active-controlled phase III clinical trial. [ 2 ]  In this trial, taurolidine/heparin delayed the time it took to acquire a catheter related bloodstream infection. [ 2 ]  Taurolidine/heparin demonstrated a 71% risk reduction in catheter related bloodstream infections versus the heparin comparator arm (95% confidence interval for risk reduction: 38% to 86%; p value = 0.0006). [ 2 ]


Athar Blood Bank  is an initiative by  Athar Minorities Social and Welfare Association  and is based in Solapur, Maharashtra. [ 2 ]  The Athar Blood Bank was inaugurated on 2 June 2012 by  Sushil Kumar Shinde  (then  Minister of Power (India)) .  Service to Humanity  was the slogan chosen by the founder as a motto for Athar Blood Bank. Construction of new Maternity Home is on cards of the Athar Minorities Social and Welfare Association in near future. It is running successfully and conducts blood donation camps across the state and helping humanity. [ 3 ]


Athar Blood Bank was established in 2012 by group of individuals mainly  Maulana Syed Shahabuddin Salfi Firdausi , Qayyum Inamdar, Dr. Nilofer Bohri, Mushtaq Chaudhary, Abdul Razzaq Kamble, Azam Shaikh,  Usman Mansoori, Mukhtar Humnabadi and few others. [ citation needed ]


The blood collection center at 1st Floor, Jamiya complex, Near Samachar Chowk,  Solapur ,  Maharashtra  is equipped with all the latest equipment and can host multiple blood donations simultaneously. [ 4 ]  Eighteen staff, including three doctors, work at the center and has the capacity to store 700 units. It is operational 24*7 and supplies blood to Government Civil Hospital and Private Hospitals across Solapur district. The bank provides free blood to  thalassemia  and HIV patients. Also, financially weak sections are given discounted rate and sometimes they are not charged at all. [ 5 ]


Athar Blood Bank collects blood from different groups e.g.  colleges  and public or private organizations, where any person can donate blood. Bank organizes an average of seven blood donation camps in a month.  Blood is transported through an ambulance which also provides mobile  medical facility .


Recently 200 people have donated the blood in a camp organized by Jamiat-e-Ahle Hadeeths in Social School, Solapur. [ 6 ]


The blood is processed in the lab having a state-of-art facility after the collection either from the center or camps. After initial screening blood is separated in major three components e.g. red cells, plasma and platelets. [ citation needed ]


This article about an organisation in India is a  stub . You can help Wikipedia by  expanding it .


This article about a medical organization or association is a  stub . You can help Wikipedia by  expanding it .


Australian Red Cross Lifeblood , simply known as  Lifeblood , is a branch of the  Australian Red Cross  responsible for the  collection  and distribution of blood and biological products in Australia. Lifeblood employs around 3,700 employees across scientific, clinical and support services, processing over one and a half a million blood donations each year. Lifeblood is primarily funded by the  Australian Government  and  state and territory governments .


On 15 November 2019, the Australian Red Cross Blood Service changed its name and branding to Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, citing its increasing responsibility for non-blood products such as  microbiota ,  tissue and organs  and  breast milk . [ 1 ] [ 2 ]


As with other blood transfusion services, the Red Cross has had to strike a balance between protecting blood recipients against infection, and accepting enough donors to maintain an adequate supply of blood. This has led to debate over which categories of potential donors should be excluded.


In 2003, a federal government report found that despite the introduction of hepatitis C screening from February 1990, infected donors were told to keep donating until July of that same year; a total of 20,000 people were estimated to have been infected with hepatitis C via blood products. Some infected blood was given to CSL and may have been used in thousands of CSL products, although it has not been shown that any of these products caused infection in the recipients. [ 3 ]


The service has a policy of barring  men who have had sex with men  (MSM) during the previous twelve months from donating blood (an earlier policy had excluded any men who had had sex with other men since 1980, regardless of time elapsed). This has been the source of ongoing controversy, with a case (in 2008) referred to the Tasmanian Anti-Discrimination Commission. [ 4 ]  People who have engaged in heterosexual or female-to-female sex during the past 12 months are allowed to give blood. Female-to-female transmission is considered by the  Centers for Disease Control  to be rare. [ 5 ]  As well as deferring blood donations from MSM, other categories of sexual activity can also result in a 12-month deferral, such as sex with a  prostitute  or having a partner who has tested positive to hepatitis B or C. [ 6 ]


In 2014, several gay men again requested that the Australian Red Cross Blood Service permit them to donate blood. [ 7 ] [ 8 ]   The Red Cross, in noting their concern, said they were receptive to a reduction in the current deferral period from 12 to 6 months. However, the Australian  Therapeutic Goods Administration  rejected their submission, arguing that there would be a greater risk of HIV without a significant increase in blood supply. [ 9 ]  The Red Cross say they do not defer based on sexuality or relationships, but rather on sexual activity, and for this reason it is not possible to deal with MSM on an individual basis. [ 10 ]


In April 2020 the Therapeutic Goods Administration revised the deferral period for MSM down to three months. The revision required approval of the federal, state and territory governments before it could go into effect. [ 11 ]  The revised policy came into effect on 31 January 2021. [ 12 ]


In April 2022, the Therapeutic Goods Administration accepted the submission of Lifeblood and the  University of New South Wales  and removed the rule that made people who had lived in the United Kingdom for more than six months between 1980 and 1996 ineligible. Before the change came into effect in July 2022, these donors were unable to donate due to the risk of  human variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease  (vCJD, or "mad cow disease") exposure. [ 13 ]


The  B Positive Choir  is a British choir. It contains 60 singers who suffer with the  sickle cell  disease or who have close friends or family suffering from it. The choir is led by Colin Anderson and  Lurine Cato  and features members from across the UK. [ 1 ]


The choir was formed by  NHS Blood and Transplant  as an initiative to help raise the awareness of the disease as well as attract new donors to give blood, which is essential to treating the disease, particularly amongst black and Asian communities who the NHS feel are under-represented. [ 2 ] [ 3 ]


The choir performed at the  Boisdale of Canary Wharf  restaurant as a warm-up show for the 2017  MOBO Awards . [ 4 ]  They then performed at the awards show proper in  Leeds , with gospel artist  Lurine Cato  on 29 November. [ 5 ]  MOBO founder  Kanya King  later said she was happy to support and work with the B Positive Choir and was pleased that their televised performance was popular. [ 3 ]


Following the performance, they were invited to perform Christmas songs at  St Pancras railway station . [ 6 ]  They also released a charity single, "Rise Up" in late 2017. [ 3 ]


The B Positive Choir starred in the 12th season of  Britain's Got Talent . They were selected to appear in the live show, and came in the top three of the second semi-final.  Amanda Holden  and  Alesha Dixon  voted for the choir, but  Simon Cowell  and  David Walliams  did not. The tie left it up to the audience, and the B Positive Choir were eliminated. However, they were later chosen as the judges' wildcard act, reinstating them into the final. The choir finished in 11th place.


In 2019 the choir performed before members of the  royal family  at the annual Commonwealth Service at  Westminster Abbey . [ 7 ]


This article on a United Kingdom band or other musical ensemble is a  stub . You can help Wikipedia by  expanding it .


The  Blood Donation Badge of Honor  ( German :  Blutspendeehrennadel ) is a German award presented by the  German Red Cross  and by the Blood donation service of the  Bundeswehr  for voluntary unpaid  blood donations .


The badge depicts a golden cross with a red dot in the center, symbolizing a drop of blood on red background. The awards of 25 or more donations feature a  laurel wreath  around the cross. The awards of 50 or more donations also feature diamonds around the center. The number of donations is also shown at the bottom of the laurel wreath.  If worn as a ribbon bar, a miniature version of the badge is attached to a red ribbon bar. [ citation needed ]


Blood donation service of the German armed forces :


For 3; 6; 10; 15; 25; 40; 50; 75; 100; 125; 150; 175; 200; 225; 250; 275 and 300 donations.


Donors with three or ten blood donations receive their certificate of honor directly on site. Donors with 25 donations will receive their badge of honor on site and will be sent their certificate. In the local associations, donors are honored from the 50th donation. From the 75th donation, the design of the badge of honor differs in the form of a medal with the inscription "Donate blood save lives", a cross in a stylized drop of blood and a garnet in a double wreath. In addition, donors who donate more than 75 blood receive an invitation to a major cross-district donor honor. [ 1 ]


German Red Cross


For 10; 25; 50; 75; 100; 125; 150; 175; 200; 250; 275 and 300 donations.


Bavarian Red Cross


For 3; 10; 25; 50; 75; 100; 125; 150; 175; 200; 225; 250; 275 and 300 donations.


The ribbon is an official German medal according to the  Law regarding Titles, Medals and Decorations . It is usually awarded by the local Red Cross chapter, the local mayor, or for military service members the ribbon is awarded by the commanding officer.


Members of the German fire departments, the  Federal Agency for Technical Relief  and other rescue services may wear the ribbon bar for the badge on their  uniform  or  service dress .


The Blood Transfusion Service of the Bundeswehr awards a lapel pin to those soldiers who make voluntary donations of blood.  The ribbon is currently not permitted to be worn on uniforms of the Bundeswehr.


A  blood bank  is a center where  blood  gathered as a result of  blood donation  is stored and preserved for later use in  blood transfusion . The term "blood bank" typically refers to a department of a hospital usually within a  clinical pathology   laboratory  where the storage of blood product occurs and where pre-transfusion and  blood compatibility testing  is performed. However, it sometimes refers to a collection center, and some hospitals also perform collection. Blood banking includes tasks related to blood collection, processing, testing, separation, and storage. [ citation needed ]


For blood donation agencies in various countries, see  list of blood donation agencies  and  list of blood donation agencies in the United States .


Several types of blood transfusion exist: [ citation needed ]


While the first  blood transfusions  were made directly from donor to receiver before  coagulation , it was discovered that by adding  anticoagulant  and  refrigerating  the blood it was possible to store it for some days, thus opening the way for the development of blood banks.  John Braxton Hicks  was the first to experiment with chemical methods to prevent the coagulation of blood at  St Mary's Hospital, London , in the late 19th century. His attempts, using  phosphate of soda , however, were unsuccessful. [ citation needed ]


The first non-direct transfusion was performed on March 27, 1914, by the  Belgian  doctor  Albert Hustin , though this was a diluted solution of blood. The  Argentine  doctor  Luis Agote  used a much less diluted solution in November of the same year. Both used  sodium citrate  as an anticoagulant. [ 1 ]


The  First World War  acted as a catalyst for the rapid development of blood banks and transfusion techniques. Inspired by the need to give blood to wounded soldiers in the absence of a donor,  [ 2 ]   Francis Peyton Rous  at the  Rockefeller University  (then The Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research) wanted to solve the problems of blood transfusion. [ 2 ]  With a colleague, Joseph R. Turner, he made two critical discoveries: blood typing was necessary to avoid blood clumping (coagulation) and blood samples could be preserved using chemical treatment. [ 3 ]  Their report in March 1915 to identify possible blood preservative was of a failure. The experiments with gelatine, agar, blood serum extracts, starch and beef albumin proved useless. [ 4 ]


In June 1915, they made the first important report in the  Journal of the American Medical Association  that agglutination could be avoided if the blood samples of the donor and recipient were tested before. They developed a rapid and simple method for testing blood compatibility in which coagulation and the suitability of the blood for transfusion could be easily determined. They used  sodium citrate  to dilute the blood samples, and after mixing the recipient's and donor's blood in 9:1 and 1:1 parts, blood would either clump or remain watery after 15 minutes. Their result with a medical advice was clear:


[If] clumping is present in the 9:1 mixture and to a less degree or not at all in the 1:1 mixture, it is certain that the blood of the patient agglutinates that of the donor and may perhaps hemolyze it. Transfusion in such cases is dangerous. Clumping in the 1:1 mixture with little or none in the 9:1 indicates that the plasma of the prospective donor agglutinates the cells of the prospective recipient. The risk from transfusing is much less under such circumstances, but it may be doubted whether the blood is as useful as one which does not and is not agglutinated. A blood of the latter kind should always be chosen if possible. [ 5 ]


Rous was well aware that Austrian physician  Karl Landsteiner  had discovered blood types a decade earlier, but the practical usage was not yet developed, as he described: "The fate of Landsteiner's effort to call attention to the practical bearing of the group differences in human bloods provides an exquisite instance of knowledge marking time on technique. Transfusion was still not done because (until at least 1915), the risk of clotting was too great." [ 6 ]  In February 1916, they reported in the  Journal of Experimental Medicine  the key method for blood preservation. They replaced the additive, gelatine, with a mixture sodium citrate and glucose ( dextrose ) solution and found: "in a mixture of 3 parts of human blood, 2 parts of  isotonic  citrate solution (3.8 per cent sodium citrate in water), and 5 parts of isotonic dextrose solution (5.4 per cent dextrose in water), the cells remain intact for about 4 weeks." [ 7 ]  A separate report indicates the use of citrate-saccharose (sucrose) could maintain blood cells for two weeks. [ 8 ]  They noticed that the preserved bloods were just like fresh bloods and that they "function excellently when reintroduced into the body." [ 7 ]  The use of sodium citrate with sugar, sometimes known as Rous-Turner solution, was the main discovery that paved the way for the development of various blood preservation methods and blood bank. [ 9 ] [ 10 ]


Canadian Lieutenant  Lawrence Bruce Robertson  was instrumental in persuading the  Royal Army Medical Corps  (RAMC) to adopt the use of blood transfusion at the  Casualty Clearing Stations  for the wounded. In October 1915, Robertson performed his first wartime transfusion with a syringe to a patient who had multiple shrapnel wounds. He followed this up with four subsequent transfusions in the following months, and his success was reported to Sir  Walter Morley Fletcher , director of the  Medical Research Committee . [ citation needed ]


Robertson published his findings in the  British Medical Journal  in 1916, and—with the help of a few like minded individuals (including the eminent physician  Edward William Archibald )—was able to persuade the British authorities of the merits of blood transfusion. Robertson went on to establish the first blood transfusion apparatus at a Casualty Clearing Station on the  Western Front  in the spring of 1917. [ 11 ]


Oswald Hope Robertson , a medical researcher and  U.S. Army  officer, worked with Rous at the Rockefeller between 1915 and 1917, and learned the blood matching and preservation methods. [ 12 ]  He was attached to the RAMC in 1917, where he was instrumental in establishing the first blood banks, with soldiers as donors, in preparation for the anticipated  Third Battle of Ypres . [ 13 ]  He used  sodium citrate  as the anticoagulant, and the blood was extracted from punctures in the vein, and was stored in bottles at British and American Casualty Clearing Stations along the Front. He also experimented with preserving separated  red blood cells  in iced bottles. [ 11 ]   Geoffrey Keynes , a British surgeon, developed a portable machine that could store blood to enable transfusions to be carried out more easily.


The world's first blood donor service was established in 1921 by the secretary of the  British Red Cross ,  Percy Lane Oliver . [ 14 ]  Volunteers were subjected to a series of physical tests to establish their  blood group . The  London Blood Transfusion Service  was free of charge and expanded rapidly. By 1925, it was providing services for almost 500 patients and it was incorporated into the structure of the British Red Cross in 1926. Similar systems were established in other cities including  Sheffield ,  Manchester  and  Norwich , and the service's work began to attract international attention. Similar services were established in France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, Australia and Japan. [ 15 ]


Vladimir Shamov and  Sergei Yudin  in the  Soviet Union  pioneered the  transfusion of cadaveric blood  from recently deceased donors. Yudin performed such a transfusion successfully for the first time on March 23, 1930, and reported his first seven  clinical   transfusions  with cadaveric blood at the Fourth Congress of  Ukrainian  Surgeons at Kharkiv in September. Also in 1930, Yudin organized the world's first blood bank at the Nikolay Sklifosovsky Institute, which set an example for the establishment of further blood banks in different regions of the Soviet Union and in other countries. By the mid-1930s the Soviet Union had set up a system of at least 65 large blood centers and more than 500 subsidiary ones, all storing "canned" blood and shipping it to all corners of the country.


One of the earliest blood banks was established by  Frederic Durán-Jordà  during the  Spanish Civil War  in 1936. Duran joined the Transfusion Service at the  Barcelona Hospital  at the start of the conflict, but the hospital was soon overwhelmed by the demand for blood and the paucity of available donors. With support from the Department of Health of the  Spanish Republican Army , Duran established a blood bank for the use of wounded soldiers and civilians. The 300–400 ml of extracted blood was mixed with 10% citrate solution in a modified Duran Erlenmeyer flask. The blood was stored in a sterile glass enclosed under pressure at 2 °C. During 30 months of work, the Transfusion Service of Barcelona registered almost 30,000 donors, and processed 9,000 liters of blood. [ 16 ]


In 1937  Bernard Fantus , director of therapeutics at the  Cook County Hospital  in  Chicago , established one of the first hospital blood banks in the  United States . [ 17 ]  In creating a hospital laboratory that preserved, refrigerated and stored donor blood, Fantus originated the term "blood bank". Within a few years, hospital and community blood banks were established across the United States. [ 18 ]


Frederic Durán-Jordà  fled to Britain in 1938, and worked with  Janet Vaughan  at the  Royal Postgraduate Medical School  at Hammersmith Hospital to create a system of national blood banks in London. [ 19 ]  With the outbreak of  war  looking imminent in 1938, the  War Office  created the Army Blood Supply Depot (ABSD) in Bristol headed by  Lionel Whitby  and in control of four large blood depots around the country. British policy through the war was to supply military personnel with blood from centralized depots, in contrast to the approach taken by the Americans and Germans where troops at the front were bled to provide required blood. The British method proved to be more successful at adequately meeting all requirements and over 700,000 donors were bled over the course of the war. This system evolved into the  National Blood Transfusion Service  established in 1946, the first national service to be implemented. [ 20 ]


A blood collection program was initiated in the US in 1940 and  Edwin Cohn  pioneered the process of  blood fractionation . He worked out the techniques for isolating the  serum albumin  fraction of  blood plasma , which is essential for maintaining the  osmotic pressure  in the  blood vessels , preventing their collapse.


The use of blood plasma as a substitute for whole blood and for transfusion purposes was proposed as early as 1918, in the correspondence columns of the  British Medical Journal , by Gordon R. Ward. At the onset of  World War II , liquid plasma was used in Britain. A large project, known as 'Blood for Britain' began in August 1940 to collect blood in  New York City  hospitals for the export of plasma to  Britain . A dried plasma package was developed, which reduced breakage and made the transportation, packaging, and storage much simpler. [ 21 ]


The resulting dried plasma package came in two tin cans containing 400 cc bottles. One bottle contained enough  distilled water  to reconstitute the dried plasma contained within the other bottle. In about three minutes, the plasma would be ready to use and could stay fresh for around four hours. [ 22 ]   Charles R. Drew  was appointed medical supervisor, and he was able to transform the  test tube  methods into the first successful mass production technique.


Another important breakthrough came in 1939–40 when  Karl Landsteiner , Alex Wiener, Philip Levine, and R.E. Stetson discovered the  Rh blood group system , which was found to be the cause of the majority of  transfusion reactions  up to that time. Three years later, the introduction by  J.F. Loutit  and Patrick L. Mollison of  acid-citrate-dextrose  (ACD) solution, which reduced the volume of anticoagulant, permitted transfusions of greater volumes of blood and allowed longer-term storage.


Carl Walter and W.P. Murphy Jr. introduced the  plastic bag  for blood collection in 1950. Replacing breakable  glass  bottles with durable plastic bags allowed for the evolution of a collection system capable of safe and easy preparation of multiple blood components from a single unit of whole blood.


Further extending the shelf life of stored blood up to 42 days was an anticoagulant preservative, CPDA-1, introduced in 1979, which increased the blood supply and facilitated resource-sharing among blood banks. [ 23 ] [ 24 ]


In the U.S., certain standards are set for the collection and processing of each blood product.  "Whole blood" (WB) is the proper name for one defined product, specifically unseparated venous blood with an approved preservative added.  Most blood for transfusion is collected as whole blood.   Autologous  donations are sometimes transfused without further modification, however whole blood is typically separated (via centrifugation) into its components, with  red blood cells  (RBC) in solution being the most commonly used product.  Units of WB and RBC are both kept refrigerated at 33.8 to 42.8 °F (1.0 to 6.0 °C), with maximum permitted storage periods ( shelf lives ) of 35 and 42 days respectively. RBC units can also be frozen when buffered with glycerol, but this is an expensive and time-consuming process, and is rarely done.  Frozen red cells are given an expiration date of up to ten years and are stored at −85 °F (−65 °C).


The less-dense  blood plasma  is made into a variety of frozen components, and is labeled differently based on when it was frozen and what the intended use of the product is.  If the plasma is frozen promptly and is intended for transfusion, it is typically labeled as  fresh frozen plasma . If it is intended to be made into other products, it is typically labeled as recovered plasma or plasma for  fractionation .   Cryoprecipitate  can be made from other plasma components.  These components must be stored at 0 °F (−18 °C) or colder, but are typically stored at −22 °F (−30 °C). The layer between the red cells and the plasma is referred to as the  buffy coat  and is sometimes removed to make  platelets  for transfusion.  Platelets are typically pooled before transfusion and have a shelf life of 5 to 7 days, or 3 days once the facility that collected them has completed their tests.  Platelets are stored at room temperature (72 °F or 22 °C) and must be rocked/agitated.  Since they are stored at room temperature in nutritive solutions, they are at relatively high risk for growing  bacteria .


Some blood banks also collect products by  apheresis . The most common component collected is plasma via  plasmapheresis , but red blood cells and platelets can be collected by similar methods.  These products generally have the same shelf life and storage conditions as their conventionally-produced counterparts.


Donors are sometimes paid; in the U.S. and Europe, most blood  for transfusion  is collected from volunteers while plasma for other purposes may be from paid donors.


Most collection facilities as well as hospital blood banks also perform testing to determine the  blood type  of patients and to identify compatible blood products, along with a battery of tests (e.g. disease) and treatments (e.g. leukocyte filtration) to ensure or enhance quality. The increasingly recognized problem of inadequate efficacy of transfusion [ 25 ]  is also raising the profile of RBC viability and quality. Notably, U.S. hospitals spend more on dealing with the consequences of transfusion-related complications than on the combined costs of buying, testing/treating, and transfusing their blood. [ 26 ]


Routine blood storage is 42 days or 6 weeks for stored packed  red blood cells  (also called "StRBC" or "pRBC"), by far the most commonly transfused blood product, and involves refrigeration but usually not freezing. There has been increasing controversy about whether a given product unit's age is a factor in transfusion efficacy, specifically on whether "older" blood directly or indirectly increases risks of complications. [ 27 ] [ 28 ]  Studies have not been consistent on answering this question, [ 29 ]  with some showing that older blood is indeed less effective but with others showing no such difference; nevertheless, as storage time remains the only available way to estimate quality status or loss, a  first-in-first-out  inventory management approach is standard presently. [ 30 ]  It is also important to consider that there is large  variability  in storage results for different donors, which combined with limited available quality testing, poses challenges to clinicians and regulators seeking reliable indicators of quality for blood products and storage systems. [ 31 ]


Transfusions of  platelets  are comparatively far less numerous, but they present unique storage/management issues. Platelets may only be stored for 7 days, [ 32 ]  due largely to their greater potential for contamination, which is in turn due largely to a higher storage temperature.


Insufficient transfusion efficacy can result from red blood cell (RBC) blood product units damaged by so-called  storage lesion —a set of biochemical and biomechanical changes which occur during storage. With red cells, this can decrease viability and ability for tissue oxygenation. [ 33 ]   Although some of the biochemical changes are reversible after the blood is transfused, [ 34 ]  the biomechanical changes are less so, [ 35 ]  and rejuvenation products are not yet able to adequately reverse this phenomenon. [ 36 ]


Current regulatory measures are in place to minimize RBC storage lesion—including a maximum shelf life (currently 42 days), a maximum auto-hemolysis threshold (currently 1% in the US), and a minimum level of post-transfusion RBC survival  in vivo  (currently 75% after 24 hours). [ 37 ]  However, all of these criteria are applied in a universal manner that does not account for differences among units of product; [ 31 ]  for example, testing for the post-transfusion RBC survival  in vivo  is done on a sample of healthy volunteers, and then compliance is presumed for all RBC units based on universal (GMP) processing standards. RBC survival does not guarantee efficacy, but it is a necessary prerequisite for cell function, and hence serves as a regulatory proxy. Opinions vary as to the best way to determine transfusion efficacy in a patient  in vivo . [ 38 ]  In general, there are not yet any  in vitro  tests to assess quality deterioration or preservation for specific units of RBC blood product prior to their transfusion, though there is exploration of potentially relevant tests based on RBC membrane properties such as  erythrocyte deformability [ 39 ]  and  erythrocyte fragility  (mechanical). [ 40 ]


Many physicians have adopted a so-called "restrictive protocol"—whereby transfusion is held to a minimum—due in part to the noted uncertainties surrounding storage lesion, in addition to the very high direct and indirect costs of transfusions, [ 26 ]  along with the increasing view that many transfusions are inappropriate or use too many RBC units. [ 41 ] [ 42 ]


Platelet storage lesion is a very different phenomenon from RBC storage lesion, due largely to the different functions of the products and purposes of the respective transfusions, along with different processing issues and inventory management considerations. [ 43 ]


Although as noted the primary inventory-management approach is first in, first out (FIFO) to minimize product expiration, there are some deviations from this policy—both in current practice as well as under research. For example, exchange transfusion of RBC in neonates calls for use of blood product that is five days old or less, to "ensure" optimal cell function. [ 44 ]   Also, some hospital blood banks will attempt to accommodate physicians' requests to provide low-aged RBC product for certain kinds of patients (e.g. cardiac surgery). [ 45 ]


More recently, novel approaches are being explored to complement or replace FIFO. One is to balance the desire to reduce average product age (at transfusion) with the need to maintain sufficient availability of non-outdated product, leading to a strategic blend of FIFO with last in, first out (LIFO). [ 46 ]


"Long-term" storage for all blood products is relatively uncommon, compared to routine/short-term storage.  Cryopreservation  of red blood cells is done to store rare units for up to ten years. [ 47 ]  The cells are incubated in a  glycerol  solution which acts as a  cryoprotectant  ("antifreeze") within the cells. The units are then placed in special sterile containers in a freezer at very low temperatures.  The exact temperature depends on the glycerol concentration.


Blood Centers of the Pacific  was a community-based,  nonprofit   blood center  collecting blood  donations  and provides safe  blood  and  blood components  for  transfusion  and also related services to more than 40 hospitals [ 1 ]  in the  Bay Area  and  Northern California . Its predecessors included the first blood bank in the United States, which through expansions grew in the San Francisco and Sacramento areas. The Blood Centers of the Pacific name was retired in 2018 when parent Blood Systems, Inc., unified all of its regional operations under the  Vitalant  name.


On June 17, 1941, [ 2 ]  the Irwin Memorial Blood Bank opened its doors in response to the lack of a sufficient method of obtaining and storing  blood  for later use – by both the military and community hospitals in the  San Francisco  area. The aim was to ensure that patients in the  Bay Area  would never again be without an adequate supply of blood. Irwin Memorial Blood Bank is credited as the first community  blood bank  in the United States. [ 3 ]


The San Francisco County Medical Society granted the fledgling blood bank permission to operate out of the basement floor of an old San Francisco home, the Irwin Mansion. However, after years of growth, the blood bank had expanded its blood collection operations throughout  Northern California , and it soon became clear that a bigger facility was needed for its headquarters. In April 1955, Irwin opened its new doors at Masonic and Turk Streets in San Francisco. [ 4 ]  The Blood Centers of the Pacific headquarters still exist at this location today. [ citation needed ]


In 1997, the Irwin Memorial Blood Bank merged with the Peninsula Memorial Blood Bank to become Blood Centers of the Pacific, reflecting its larger service area. [ 4 ]  In 1999, Blood Centers of the Pacific affiliated with United Blood Services, the nation’s largest blood collection organization. [ 4 ]  Blood Centers of the Pacific merged with the Sacramento area's BloodSource blood center in 2015; [ 5 ]  United Blood Services changed its corporate brand name in 2018 to  Vitalant  and retired all of its regional brand names. [ 6 ]


The Blood Systems Research Institute was housed at Blood Centers of the Pacific. It changed its name to Vitalant Research Institute as part of the rebranding. [ citation needed ]


This is a  list of blood donation agencies  in different countries.


There are more than 500 blood banks in Mexico, about 60% of which collect less than 2,000 units per year. [ 1 ]   Most are government agencies, and many are private. [ 1 ]


The United States does not have a centralized blood donation service.  The  American Red Cross  collects approximately 35% of the blood used, while the rest is collected by independent nonprofit blood centers, most of which are members of  America's Blood Centers .  The US military collects blood from service members for its own use, but also draws blood from the civilian supply. [ 3 ]


A social organization, which has active involvement in blood donation in India.
It has been involved in blood donation through major camps since 2010.


Detail of the Major Blood units collection through voluntary blood donation camps are:-


Blood donation in Bangladesh  is an activity conducted by several different organisations. As of 2011 [update] , about 25% of the nation's blood supply came from voluntary donation, 20–25% from paid donors, and 50–55% from one-time donation for a specific patient.


Blood transfusion  service became available in  Bangladesh  at the  Dhaka Medical College Hospital  in 1950. [ 1 ]  Professional blood donors were the mainstay of blood donation in Bangladesh, with 47% of donated blood coming from professional donors as late as the year 2000. [ 1 ]  The potential for contamination in the supply, and the need for volunteer donors was well recognised. [ 1 ]  An estimate from 2011 is that of the 500,000 units of blood required annually, only 25% come from voluntary donation, 20–25% from paid donors, and 50–55% from one-time donation for a specific patient. [ 2 ]


Medicine Club is a non-profit humanitarian organization in Bangladesh volunteered by medical and dental students. [ 3 ]  The organization was founded on 31 January 1981, at  Mymensingh Medical College [ 3 ]  with the intention of helping the helpless and serving humanity. Now it has 21 units in different medical & dental colleges. [ 3 ]  It has since broadened its scope to include voluntary blood donating, prevent Thalassaemia  [ 4 ]  throughout Bangladesh & rise awareness about this. It contributes a large amount of donated blood throughout Bangladesh. [ 5 ]  It also helps poor patients by donating money and drugs. [ 6 ]  This organization also distributes vaccines. [ 7 ]


The first  voluntary blood donation program in Bangladesh was begun in 1977 at  Dhaka Medical College , and was organized by  SANDHANI . [ 8 ]
SANDHANI has now 25 units in different medical and dental colleges. [ 9 ]
SANDHANI is a voluntary institution run by the medical and dental students of BANGLADESH. It is mainly working on motivation on voluntary blood donation and posthumous eye donation in Bangladesh.
SANDHANI is also working for the helpless patient in the community by serving them with drug from the drug bank, donating blood to the thalassaemia patient, giving relief to the flooded and disaster affected people etc. [ 10 ]


The  International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement  began a blood program in Bangladesh in 1981. [ 11 ]  Today they operate several centres, using both whole blood and fractionated blood components. [ 11 ]


A 1997 survey of students at the  University of Dhaka  had found a generally favourable attitude towards voluntary blood donation, and an overwhelmingly unfavourable attitude to paid blood donation, and recommended that a campaign should be started immediately to increase awareness and participation in voluntary blood donation among the student population. [ 12 ]


Badhan is a non-political voluntary  blood donors'  organisation in Bangladesh that was established in 1997. [ 13 ]  Badhan's first activity was a free blood-group testing program that took place on 24 October 1997 at  Shahidullah Hall  of the University of Dhaka. [ 13 ]  Shahidullah Hall is very close to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, and before that time people needing blood for patients would gather regularly in or near the hall gate, seeking help. [ 13 ]  Mohammad Shahidul Islam Ripon was the principal originator of the program, along with other students. [ 14 ]


The blood provided is fresh rather than stored, [ 14 ]  using a database of people whose blood type has been previously established. The graduate- and postgraduate-level students of Bangladeshi universities and postgraduate colleges are the main participants of the organisation. [ 13 ]  The organisation is active in 14 universities and 29 university colleges. [ 14 ]


Other activities include raising awareness about donating fresh blood, donating blood voluntarily for patients and helping poor people in time of natural disasters. [ 15 ]


Financing comes primarily from individual members and ex-members, as well as from the universities and colleges administration, from donations. [ 14 ]  The California non-profit organisation SpaandanB has been a significant contributor from outside Bangladesh. [ 16 ]
Badhan wants to make blood donation as a social movement. Its ultimate goals are (a) none should die from lack of blood, (b) every person knows his/her blood group. The head office of Badhan is located on the ground floor of TSC, Dhaka University. [ citation needed ]


Charpoka Blood Bank is an initiative by Project Charpoka. It is a voluntary blood donating project in  Bangladesh . The Charpoka Blood Bank was inaugurated in 2016. It has the largest database of blood donors and it aimed to build 2 million blood donors database by 2020. [ 17 ]


Blood donations  in  India  are conducted by organisations and hospitals through blood donation camps. Donors can also visit  blood banks  in hospitals to donate blood. Efforts by the government and advocacy groups over the years have helped bridge the gap between demand and supply. The regulatory framework for blood donation and blood bank management rests with the  Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation , while technical bodies like the National Blood Transfusion Council and  National AIDS Control Organisation  formulate guidelines and recommendations for transfusion medicine and blood bank management. [ 1 ]  Challenges persist with regards to regulation of blood banks and transfusion practices as the sector is largely fragmented with uneven distribution of blood banks and supply of blood in parts of the country. Donors are usually provided with refreshments after the procedure, which include  glucose  drinks, biscuits and fruits. Some organisations offer transportation facilities, as well as certificates or badges as gratitude. [ 2 ]


The history of voluntary blood donation in  India  dates back to 1942 during the  Second World War  when blood donors were required to help the wounded soldiers. The first blood bank was established in  Kolkata ,  West Bengal  in March 1949 at the  All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health  and was managed by the  Red Cross . The donors were mostly government employees and people from the Anglo-Indian community who donated blood for a humanitarian cause. The number of voluntary donors declined after the war and donors had to be paid for the blood.  Leela Moolgaonkar , a social reformer, initiated voluntary blood donation camps in  Mumbai  from 1954. [ 3 ]  The 1960s saw many blood banks open in different cities. In 1975, the Indian Society of Blood Transfusion and Immunohaematology headed by  J. G. Jolly  declared 1 October as the National Voluntary Blood Donation Day. [ 4 ]


The HIV pandemic in the 1980s led to the government setting up the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) in 1992 to oversee the policies in preventing the spread of AIDS. Subsequently, the National AIDS Control Programme was launched which led to improvements in patient screening and hygienic transfusion procedures. A  public interest litigation  was filed in the Supreme Court in 1996 to abolish the practice of selling blood which became effective on 1 January 1998. [ 2 ]  This led to a temporary shortage of blood as voluntary donations were still relatively low. [ 5 ]  The NACO in 2002 adopted the WHO Guidelines on the Clinical Use of Blood. [ 6 ]  Selling or donating blood in exchange for money is illegal under the  National Blood Transfusion Services Act 2007  and those found convicted may face a prison sentence of up to three months with fine. [ 7 ]  A petition was filed in the Supreme Court in March 2021 challenging the blood donation guidelines that prohibits transgender people, members of the gay community and sex workers from donating blood. [ 8 ]


There are several parameters that determine the eligibility of an individual to donate blood. Guidelines laid down by the  Ministry of Health ,  Government of India  have to be followed by blood banks for donor screening. [ 2 ]


Overall health and vital signs: [ 9 ]


Individuals under certain conditions are deemed ineligible to donate blood: [ 9 ]


The number of voluntary blood donors increased from 54.4% in 2006–2007 to 83.1% in 2011–2012, with the number of blood units increasing from 4.4 million units in 2006–2007 to 9.3 million units in 2012–2013. [ 3 ]  In 2016, the  Ministry of Health and Family Welfare  reported a donation of 10.9 million units against a requirement of 12 million units. [ 10 ]  In 2018 the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare with support from its various institutions published a detailed report on the blood requirement in India. [ 11 ]  12.7 million units were donated in 2020, lower than projected due to the  COVID-19 pandemic . [ 12 ]  A study in 2022 extrapolated the eligible donor population in India at 402 million. The supply was estimated at 33.8 donations against the demand of 36.3 per thousand donations, translating to a shortage of one million units annually. Medical specialty had the highest demand for blood at 6.0 million units (41.2%), followed by surgery 4.1 million (27.9%), obstetrics and gynecology 3.3 million (22.4%) and pediatrics 1.2 million (8.5%). [ 13 ]


Human blood is covered under the definition of  drug  under the  Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 . Blood bank activities are regulated under this act and they are required to obtain timely renewal of the license from  Drug Controller General  for operation and have to comply with the terms presented in the license. It specifies accommodation, manpower, equipment, supplies and reagents, good manufacturing practices, and process control to be followed in Indian blood transfusion services. [ 14 ]  Dual licensing of blood banks by federal and state regulatory bodies was made mandatory in 1993, with a renewal required every 5 years. [ 1 ]   NABH  is the main accreditation body for hospitals and blood banks in the country. [ 15 ] [ 16 ]  The National Haemovigilance Programme was launched in 2012 to monitor adverse transfusion reactions, and subsequently in 2015 the National Blood Donor Vigilance Programme was initiated. [ 17 ]


The National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) was formed in 1992 following the outbreak of AIDS. Following public interest litigation, a verdict by the supreme court in the case of  Common Cause vs. the Union of India  in January 1992 led to the establishment of the National Blood Transfusion Council (NBTC) at the federal level and State Blood Transfusion Councils (SBTC) for all the states to review the status of blood transfusion services in the country and conduct annual monitoring visits to blood banks. [ 18 ]  While the regulatory authority is entrusted with the task of drug regulation, NACO and NBTC are the technical bodies that frame guidelines for the practice of transfusion medicine. In 2018, an expert working group of the NBTC proposed recommendations on manpower requirements for blood banks, which outlined the minimum number of staff at blood banks and their qualifications. [ 19 ] [ 20 ]


The Government of India in 2002 published the National Blood Policy to reiterate the commitment to safe blood and blood components. [ 21 ]  It documents the strategies for making available adequate resources, technology, and training for improving transfusion services apart from outlining methods for donor motivation and appropriate clinical use of blood by clinicians. It has also taken steps for research and development in transfusion medicine. [ 18 ]  There have been recommendations to include blood under the National List of Essential Medicines to control pricing transparency and affordability of blood. [ 22 ]  The fragmented nature of organisational types that conduct blood donations, along with advancements in transfusion science and new practices in blood bank management technology have prompted calls from academics to review and amend the  Drugs and Cosmetics Act  from time to time. [ 1 ] [ 23 ]


India has government-funded and private blood donation organisations. Some major organisations operate in many regions throughout the country while others are regional and operate with local support. Along with conducting blood donation camps, they also raise awareness on voluntary blood donation and public health. Most organisations maintain online portals or physical registry where donors can enter their details and receive updates when blood donation drives are conducted; this also facilitates a network between blood donors and organisations/hospitals. [ 24 ]  Apart from such organisations, major hospitals in the country have their own blood banks where blood donation is conducted within the facility. As of 2015, there were 2.2 blood banks per million population in the country. [ 25 ]  As per a 2016 study, around 51% of the 2493 blood banks surveyed across the country had component separation facility. [ 26 ]


Despite a huge population, the demand-supply gap for blood units persists in many healthcare facilities in the country. As of 2022 the annual shortage of blood is estimated at one million units. [ 13 ]


A study conducted between 2009 and 2013 concluded a high rate of non-compliance on the part of blood banks on the quality and safety of transfusion services. [ 27 ]  Cases of transmission of infective diseases like  AIDS  due to substandard medical facilities and practices in blood banks continue to be relatively high. [ 28 ]  The  National Blood Policy  outlines the requirement for primary healthcare centres to have 24/7 service for blood transfusion, but over 80% of them lack blood storage facility. [ 29 ]  With the sector being largely unorganized and fragmented, and lack of communication between hospitals with no real-time centralized data on availability of blood units between them, there have been instances of shortage of blood at hospitals being a major factor in deaths caused by time-critical events such as accidents. [ 30 ] [ 31 ]


Disparities in access of donors in regions have led to wastage of blood stock in some parts of the country, while at the same time creating a shortage of blood in some other parts. [ 32 ]   Voluntary blood donation comprises about 70% of the blood demand, with the rest coming from replacement donors, whereas 62 nations in the world fulfill their blood demands through voluntary donations. [ 33 ] [ 34 ]  A 2011 study reported that a mere 6% of women donated blood, mostly due to physiological problems and low hemoglobin count. [ 35 ]  Anaemia is also reported as a major cause of deferral in blood donation, accounting for up to 77.9% of female and up to 37% of male deferrals. [ 22 ]  Other hurdles in increasing voluntary blood donation include the fear of pain and weakness after the procedure, and illiteracy. [ 36 ]


Documented instances of  forced blood extraction  have occurred in India, among other countries, owing to its disproportionate ratio of available supply of blood and high poverty rate. One such ring gained national attention in 2008 when an emaciated man escaped from his captors near the city of  Gorakhpur , in  Uttar Pradesh . [ 37 ] [ 38 ]  Blood donations reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily due to restrictions on travel and fear of contracting the disease at healthcare centres. [ 39 ] [ 40 ] [ 41 ]


1 October is celebrated as the national voluntary blood donation day. [ 42 ]  Blood donation agencies often organize workshops to educate people about the benefits of donating blood. [ 43 ]  With a huge population of youth, blood donation drives are conducted by hospitals and organisations at college campuses. [ 44 ] [ 45 ]  Blood donors and their family members are often given priority in case of emergency or accidents. 32 mobile blood banks were introduced in 2010 to facilitate donation in remote regions. [ 46 ] [ 47 ]  In 2016, the government launched an initiative called  E- RaktKosh  ( Rakt : blood,  Kosh : repository), a web-based mechanism that integrates all blood banks in the state into a single network, providing information about blood camps and the availability of blood in hospitals throughout the country. [ 48 ]  A mobile application for the  E- RaktKosh  portal was launched in 2020 to improve accessibility. [ 49 ]


Many countries have laws, regulations, or recommendations that effectively prohibit donations of  blood  or tissue for  organ  and  corneal transplants  from  men who have sex with men  (MSM), a classification irrespective of their  sexual activities with same-sex partners  and of whether they  identify themselves  as  bisexual  or  gay . Temporary restrictions are sometimes called "deferrals", since blood donors who are found ineligible may be found eligible at a later date. However, many deferrals are indefinite meaning that donations are not accepted at any point in the future, constituting a  de facto  ban. Even men who have monogamous relations with their same-sex partners are found ineligible.


Since 1982, the risk for HIV infection transmitted via transfusion has been almost eliminated by the use of questionnaires to exclude donors at higher risk for HIV infection and performing screening tests with highly sensitive equipment to identify infected blood donations. According to the 2015 surveillance report by Canadian Blood Services, the risk of HIV transfusion-transmitted infection was fairly low: in 1 in 21.4 million donations. [ 1 ]   Contaminated blood  put  haemophiliacs  at massive risk and severe mortality, increasing the risk of common surgical procedures. People who contracted HIV from a contaminated  blood transfusion  include  Isaac Asimov , who received a blood transfusion following cardiac surgery.


In many high-income countries HIV is more prevalent among  men who have sex with men  (MSM) than among the general population. [ 2 ]


In the United States the population most affected by HIV includes gay, bisexual, and other MSM. [ 3 ]  Of the 38,739 new HIV diagnoses in the US and dependent areas in 2017, 70% consisted of adult and adolescent gay and bisexual men. [ 3 ]  Although approximately 492,000 sexually active gay and bisexual men are at high risk for HIV, there are more tools to prevent HIV than ever before. [ 3 ]


Proponents of the lifetime restriction defend it because of the asserted risk of false negative test results [ 4 ]  and because the MSM population in developed countries tends to have a higher prevalence of HIV/AIDS infection. [ 2 ]  The UK government advisory committee, SABTO, stated in 2013 that "the risk of transfusion of HIV infected blood would increase if MSM were allowed to donate blood". [ 5 ]  In July 2017 however, the UK government reduced the one year deferral window to three months, to take effect in the following months, resulting from SABTO's updated conclusions that "new testing systems were accurate and donors were good at complying with the rules". Furthermore,  NHS Blood and Transplant  are in the process of investigating how possible it is for MSM, depending on the degree of risk, to donate without even the three-month deferral. [ 6 ]  NHS has said that there is currently a limited amount of data on effective ways of conducting such risk assessments and that the initial steps of scoping, evidence gathering and testing will potentially take up to two years to complete. [ 7 ]


Restrictions vary from country to country, and in some countries, the practice of protected sex or periods of abstinence are not considered. The restrictions affect these men and, in some cases, any female sex partners. They do not otherwise affect other women, including  women who have sex with women . With regard to blood donation, the  United States Food & Drug Administration  (FDA) enforces a three-month deferral period for MSM and women who have sex with MSM. [ 8 ]  In Canada, the deferral period for MSM blood donors was decreased to 3 months in June 2019. [ 9 ]  Meanwhile, for tissues such as  corneas , the MSM deferral period is five years in the United States and 12 months in Canada. [ 10 ]


This list shows countries that had restrictions on blood donors. [ 11 ] [ 12 ]  Most national standards require direct questioning regarding a man's sexual history, but the length of deferral varies.


Since September 2022, the ban was lifted completely. [ 22 ]


Several European countries do not have deferral policies for  men who have sex with men  (MSM). The donation is allowed if the donor has not had a risky sexual encounter, but not depending on the sexual orientation of the donor. [ 162 ] [ 163 ] [ 95 ]  For example, in Italy, the questionnaire item for sexual behaviour is symmetrical with respect to homosexual, heterosexual and bisexual intercourses and mentions them explicitly, as well as all points of sexual contact (oral, genital, anal), and does not mention usage of protection. [ 95 ]


The UK since November 2017 has  implemented a 3-month deferral policy  on all gay/bi men who want to donate their blood. [ 164 ] [ 165 ] [ 166 ]  However, this did not apply to Northern Ireland until 2020. [ 167 ]  The Advisory Committee on the Safety of Blood, Tissues and Organs recommended the policy change after a study concluded that a total ban may breach equality legislation and that the risk of HIV reaching the blood supply would only increase by approximately 2%. [ 168 ]  In December 2020, it was announced that the UK would move to a personalised sexual behaviour risk assessment and scrap the deferral period specific to MSM. [ 169 ]


In Ireland, MSM could historically donate blood if they had not engaged in oral or anal sex with another man at least 12 months prior to a donation. This policy had come into effect on 16 January 2017. On 27 July 2015, Tomás Heneghan, a 23-year-old University of Limerick student, and journalist from Galway began a legal challenge in the High Court against the permanent deferral imposed on MSM donors. [ 170 ] [ 171 ]  He argued that the questionnaire and interview process used by the IBTS does not adequately assess the risk of disease transmission posed by his donation. He claims this is in breach of EU law. He said that both failed to consider the length of time between a donor's last sexual experience and the end of a "window period" in which infections are sometimes not detected. Heneghan's previous sexual activity posed no risk of infection, according to HSE-approved advice and he said the service had no evidence upon which it could legitimately impose a life-long ban on him donating blood. Following several adjournments of the case to allow the blood service and Department of Health to examine and develop the donation policies, in late June 2016 the Irish Blood Transfusion Service recommended that the lifetime ban on MSM be reduced to a 12-month ban. Later that week the Minister for Health Simon Harris agreed to the recommendations and announced the reduction would take place. However, no timeline was reported for the implementation of the new policies. [ 172 ]


On 26 July 2016, Tomás Heneghan dropped his High Court challenge against the service as an end to the lifetime deferral on MSM blood donors had been announced in the interim. [ 173 ]  Heneghan then wrote about his experiences of challenging the ban in a number of national media outlets. [ 174 ] [ 175 ]  On 2 October 2016, it was reported that Minister Harris would implement the new policy from 16 January 2017, almost seven months after he announced the policy change. [ 82 ]  On 16 January 2017, Heneghan (now 25) attended a blood donation clinic in D'Olier Street, Dublin, and became the first man who has had sex with another man to donate blood openly in the Republic of Ireland since the lifetime deferral policy was first introduced in the 1980s. However, he also criticized the new 12-month deferral policy on MSM and called on Ireland's Health Minister to initiate a review of the IBTS and replace the 12-month deferral period for MSM with no deferral or a 3-month deferral on all donors following sexual intercourse. [ 176 ] [ 177 ] [ 178 ] [ 179 ]


On 20 May 2019, Heneghan (27) initiated a fresh legal challenge in the High Court against the blanket deferral on men who had had oral or anal sex with another man in the previous 12-month period. [ 180 ] [ 181 ] [ 182 ] [ 183 ]


Heneghan claims he cannot understand the reasoning behind the IBTS policy and argues that the questionnaire does not enable the IBTS to make a full evaluation of the level of risk presented by an individual donor due to their sexual behaviour. He also states that according to the IBTS's own website, there is a window period following infection during which HIV and hepatitis may not be detected in the blood and that this window is seven days for HIV and 16 days for hepatitis. He claims that a far less onerous restriction could be imposed rather than the 12-month deferral, which would protect blood recipients. He claims the decision to place an "automatic deferral" on him is unlawful and in breach of EU law and European communities regulations on the quality and safety of human blood products and that the policy is disproportionate, discriminates against homosexual and bisexual men, and breaches his constitutional rights and rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. The case is due to return to the court in July 2019.


In July 2019, a gay man in Ireland filed two formal complaints with the European Commission against the Department of Health and the Irish Blood Transfusion Service, and the Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service (the only part of the United Kingdom to maintain a 12-month deferral policy for MSM) over the MSM one-year deferral policy. The man, who has chosen to have his complaints examined by the Commission anonymously, is alleging the ban in both jurisdictions violates a number of European Union laws, including two European Union Directives covering the standards of quality and safety for the collection of blood by EU member states, as well as provisions contained in both the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights. The commission has informed the man his complaints will now be considered in light of EU law. [ 184 ]


A similar policy exists in the rest of the European Union and is the prevailing interpretation of the European Union Directive 2004–33/EC article 2.1 on donor deferrals. [ 185 ]  The policy, however, is not very specific and refers to "high-risk sexual contact". The UK interprets the directive to include all forms of homosexual sex as falling within 2.2.2 of Annex III to the directive "Persons whose behaviour or activity places them at risk of acquiring infectious diseases that may be transmitted by blood", requiring a deferral based on the window period for the diseases involved, and sets this at 12 months, despite the Annex suggesting 6 months for risk of exposure to hepatitis B. Hélder Trindade, President of the Portuguese Institute of Blood and Transplantation (IPST), stated in 2015 that sexually abstinent homosexuals may give blood, but that MSM is definitely seen as a risk factor. [ 186 ]  On the 28th of November 2022, the Irish Blood Transfusion Service introduced Individual Donor Risk Assessments and removed sexuality from the eligibility criteria. All potential donors including MSM are now asked about new sexual partners, of any gender, and are eligible to donate if they have had no new partners in the previous 4 months.


In Finland, the parliamentary ombudsman launched an investigation on the possible unconstitutionality of the lifetime ban in January 2006. In June 2008, it was concluded that the ban was not unlawful in Finland as it is based on "appropriately reasoned epidemiological information" and because it is related to sexual behaviour rather than sexual orientation. The ombudsman added that people over the age of 65 and people who lived in Britain during the  bovine spongiform encephalopathy  (mad cow disease) outbreak are also screened out during blood donor interviews. In December 2013, the Finnish Red Cross blood service announced it was lifting the ban and introducing a one-year deferral instead. In 2021, the deferral period in Finland was reduced to 4 months.


In July 2016, France implemented a 1-year deferral period policy on all gay and bisexual men donating blood. [ 187 ]  Then the blood MSM deferral policy implemented in France was lowered to 4 months effective on 1 February 2020. [ citation needed ]


At the formation of the  New Zealand Blood Service  (NZBS) in 1998, the deferral period had been 10 years but was reduced to 5 years in 2009. This was following an independent review of blood donation criteria in 2007–2008 which found no significant difference in risk of the blood supply for a deferral period of 5 years compared to 10 years. [ 188 ]


In 2014, the NZBS dropped the ban period from 5 years to 1 year following the recommendation of  Medsafe . [ 189 ]  Their decision was mainly caused by new information about HIV transmission in Australia [ 190 ]  which already had a one-year deferral period. The 1-year deferral commenced 15 December 2014. [ 191 ]  On 14 December 2020 the NZBS reduced the deferral to 3 months. [ 192 ]


The 3 month deferral period for MSM is on par with the 3-month deferral period for several other behavioural categories carrying a higher probability of unrecognized HIV infection, such as persons engaging in sex work and people who have resided in a country that has a high (1% or more) HIV prevalence. [ 193 ]


In the United States, the  Food and Drug Administration  (FDA) issues non-binding guidance for deferral of blood donations, though they are universally followed. [ 194 ]


In May 2023, the restrictions were updated to focus on behavior rather than sexual orientation or gender. People are ineligible to donate blood if they have: [ 195 ]


UNOS  policies for  organ donation  allow for solid organs from MSM donors such as hearts, lungs, and kidneys to be used in transplant surgeries, though they require the hospital receiving the organ to be notified if the donor was an MSM within the past 5 years. [ 196 ]  The organs are generally used unless there is a clear positive test for a disease.


Donors of human cells and tissues other than organs, such as  corneas  or reproductive tissue like semen, are ineligible for five years after the most recent contact. [ 197 ]  With regard to  corneal donations , the five-year deferral policy in the United States and the similar 12-month deferral policy in Canada have the effect of preventing thousands of corneal donations annually. [ 10 ]


Australia implemented a 12-month deferral in 1999; a comparison of confirmed HIV positive blood donations before and after the change did not see a statistically significant difference. [ 11 ]  The  Australian Red Cross Blood Service  pushed to have the deferral period lowered from twelve to six months, however it was rejected by the  Therapeutic Goods Administration  (TGA) in 2014. In April 2020 the TGA revised the deferral period for MSM down to three months. The revision requires approval of the federal, state and territory governments before it can go into effect. [ 215 ] [ 216 ]


Lifeblood's new 3-month deferral period rules went into effect on 31 January 2021. [ 217 ]  The spokesperson said they empathise with those who cannot give blood. [ 218 ]


Blood services first and foremost must ensure that all blood received for donation is safe for transfusion purposes. This is achieved by screening potential donors for high risk behaviours through questionnaires and interviews before blood is taken, and subsequent laboratory testing on samples of donated blood.


Blood services commonly justify their bans against MSM due to the marginal increase in the risk for transfusion-transmitted HIV. [ 219 ]  Other groups with similar restrictions, or complete prohibition to donate blood, due to increased or possible risk for certain infectious diseases include intravenous drug users, recipients of animal organs or tissues, and those who have traveled or lived abroad in certain countries. [ 220 ]


In the 1980s, when the HIV/AIDS epidemic outbreak occurred, there was a high prevalence of the disease in MSM and no reliable tests for the virus, which justified blanket bans on blood donations from high-risk groups. [ 221 ]


These restrictions are similar to current restrictions on people with certain residence in the United Kingdom, France, or Saudi Arabia during the height of the  BSE  ("mad cow disease") epidemic of 1980 through 1996, due to the absence of a test for its human form,  variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease  (vCJD). [ 222 ]


In 1985, early tests using the  ELISA  method looked for antibodies, which are the immune system's response to the virus. [ 223 ]  However, there is a  window period  when using this method in which a person who has been infected with HIV is able to spread the disease but may test negative for the virus. [ 224 ] [ 225 ]  This window period can be as long as three to six months, [ 226 ]  with an average of 22 days. [ 227 ]  Tests using the ELISA methods are often still used in developed countries because of their ease-of-use, as well as their fairly high  sensitivity , which boasts 100% sensitivity. [ 228 ] [ 229 ]  To cover the window period resultant from the use of these tests, donors are also screened for high risk behaviours, one of which is a history of same-sex sexual activity among male potential donors. [ 230 ]  Newer tests look for the virus itself, such as the  p24 antigen  test, which looks for a part of the virus on the surface of infected cells, and  nucleic acid tests  (NAT), which look for the genetic material of the virus in HIV-infected cells. [ 231 ]  With these tests, the window period is shorter, with an average duration of 12 days. [ 227 ]  Fourth generation, or combination, HIV tests can detect HIV infection in 99% of individuals by one and a half months after infection. [ 232 ]


Risks are also associated with a non-MSM donors testing positive for HIV, which can have major implications as the donor's last donation could have been given within the window period for testing and could have entered the blood supply, potentially infecting blood product recipients. An incident in 2003 in New Zealand saw a non-MSM donor testing positive for HIV and subsequently all blood products made with the donor's last blood donation had to be recalled. This included NZ$4 million worth of  Factor VIII , a blood clotting factor used to treat hemophiliacs which is manufactured from large pools of donated plasma, and subsequently led to a nationwide shortage of Factor VIII and the deferral of non-emergency surgery on hemophiliac patients, costing the health sector millions of dollars more. [ 188 ]  Screening out those at high risk of blood borne diseases, including MSM, reduces the potential frequency and impact of such incidents.


Objections to the restrictions, including those from the American Medical Association [ 233 ]  and the American Red Cross, are generally based on the idea that improvements in testing and other safeguards have reduced the risk from transfusion transmitted HIV to an acceptable level. Blood shortages are common, and advocates for change to the policies point out that excluding healthy donors only makes the problem worse. In 2018, approximately 10,000 donations were still urgently needed by 10 March to continue to meet patients' needs. However, Canadian Blood Services noted that the national inventory and days on hand of several blood groups remain at critically low levels. Less than four per cent of eligible donors give blood each year. [ 234 ]


Corneal transplant surgery  can cure blindness caused by corneal disease. However, there is a global shortage of corneal donations, severely limiting the availability of corneal transplants across most of the world. A 2016 study found that 12.7 million visually impaired people were in need of a corneal transplant, with only 1 cornea available for every 70 needed. [ 235 ]  Many countries have years-long waitlists for corneal transplant surgery due to the shortage of donated corneas. [ 236 ] [ 237 ]  Even though there has never been a reported case of HIV transmission through corneal transplant surgery, and even though all donated corneas are screened for the presence of HIV through antibody or nucleic acid testing, many countries continue to ban MSM corneal donors. [ 10 ]


In  some European countries , high-risk sexual intercourses lead to a temporary ban, regardless of the sex of the partner. In fact, advocates for change in other countries note that the ban encompasses all same-sex sexual contact, even if the partner's HIV status is shown beyond doubt to be negative. Advocates for change point out that a promiscuous straight male is a higher-risk donor than a gay or bisexual man in a monogamous relationship, but the former will usually be allowed to donate blood. Furthermore, in some countries, other high-risk activities determine a temporary ban, such as sexual contact with anyone who has used needles to take drugs not prescribed by their doctor, whereas MSM donors are deferred indefinitely. [ 36 ]


Many  LGBTQ  organizations view the restrictions on donation as based on  homophobia  and not based on valid medical concern since donations are rigorously  tested  to rule out donors that are infected with known viruses such as  HIV ,  hepatitis B , and  hepatitis C . They state the deferrals are based on stereotypes. [ 238 ]


Advocates worldwide for change to MSM prohibitions point out that screening of donors should focus on sexual behaviour as well as  safe sex  practices since many MSM may always have protected sex, be  monogamous , or be in other low risk categories. [ 238 ] [ 5 ]  Some groups in favor of lifting the restrictions support a waiting period after the blood is donated when the donor is considered to have had behaviour considered higher risk, and before it is used, to match the blood bank's window of testing methods. [ 238 ]  While HIV is reliably detected in 10 to 14 days with RNA testing, older testing methods provide accuracy for only up to 98% of positive cases after three months. [ 239 ]


In Canada


In the United States [ 198 ]


In the United Kingdom


In 2015, Welsh writer and poet  RJ Arkhipov  exhibited a poetry series written with his own blood as ink in protest of the MSM blood donor restrictions. His poem Inkwell discusses the shame and stigma surrounding "gay blood". An abecedarian poem, each line of Inkwell's five quatrains begins with letters from each of the blood groups, alternating between A, B, AB and O. [ 264 ] [ 265 ] [ 266 ]


In 2018, the European Court of Human Rights took up a case of a French citizen who was prevented from donating blood. [ 267 ]


" The Blood Donor " is an episode from the television  comedy  series  Hancock , the final BBC series featuring British comedian  Tony Hancock . First transmitted on 23 June 1961, the show was written by  Ray Galton and Alan Simpson , and was produced by  Duncan Wood . Supporting Hancock were  Patrick Cargill ,  Hugh Lloyd ,  Frank Thornton ,  James Ottaway  and  June Whitfield . It remains one of the best known  situation comedy  episodes ever broadcast in the United Kingdom.


Hancock arrives at his local  hospital  to  give blood . "It was either that or join the  Young Conservatives ", he tells the Blood Donor Department's reception nurse (Whitfield), before getting into an argument with her about whether British blood is superior to other types. After managing to offend two other waiting donors, Hancock amuses himself by reading the waiting room's wall posters out loud, finally singing " Coughs and sneezes spread diseases " to the tune of the  Deutschlandlied  before being shown in to see Dr MacTaggart (Cargill), greeting him in a broad Scottish accent and taken aback when the doctor responds in an educated English accent – saying "We're not all Rob Roys."


After Dr. MacTaggart has taken a blood sample Hancock blithely assumes that that is all that is needed and prepares to depart. When the doctor tells him it was just a smear ("It may be just a smear to you mate, but that’s life and death to some poor wretch!") and that he must donate a pint of blood, he protests, "I don't mind giving a reasonable amount, but a pint! That's very nearly an armful" Dr. MacTaggart finally persuades Hancock to donate the full pint by telling him he has a rare  blood type , which appeals to Hancock's snobbery. Having boasted of his lack of squeamishness, he faints while giving blood.


Recuperating afterwards in a hospital room with other patients (including the two Hancock spoke to earlier), Hancock has a chat about blood with a fellow patient (Lloyd), but since neither of them knows very much about blood, the conversation is not very informative. After the patient has left, Hancock is horrified to discover that the man has walked off with his [Hancock's]  wine gums . ("If you can't trust a blood donor, who can you trust?")


After returning home, Hancock cuts himself on a bread knife and is rushed to the Casualty Ward of the same hospital, where he receives a  transfusion  of his own blood — the only pint the hospital has of his rare blood type.


While returning from recording  The Bowmans  a week earlier, Hancock was involved in a car accident, and rather than cancel the studio booking it was decided to place  teleprompters  around the set in order to save the  comedian  the problems of learning his lines after a delay in rehearsals. In the passage where he is alone looking at the posters, Hancock was obliged to learn his lines. While it is not true Hancock never learned a line from a script again, he increasingly relied on the device mostly thereafter in his TV career. Many Hancock devotees reckon this is one of his poorest TV performances, and it is indeed quite noticeable to see Hancock's eye movements towards the teleprompters when addressing the other performers. Others, though, see no real difference between this and other classic Hancock performances, and lines from the episode have become a part of British comic folklore ("A pint? That's very nearly an armful!" "Rhesus? They're  monkeys  aren't they?"), giving it now-legendary status.


In October 1961,  Pye Records  produced an audio remake of "The Blood Donor" (duration: 28'10") starring most of the original cast, together with a remake of " The Radio Ham " (duration: 27'40") from the same series. These were produced in the style of the  radio  shows, complete with an (invited) studio audience, and released as an  LP  in 1961. [ 1 ]  These recordings have been available more or less continuously ever since, and are also found on several British comedy compilation sets.


The original episode survives in the BBC Archive as a  16mm   telerecording  with a separate magnetic soundtrack, and has been released on  Laser Disc  (BBCL 7004),  VHS  (BBCV 7034),  Betamax  (BBCB 7034) in 1985 and  DVD  (2000) compilations of Hancock episodes. The original soundtrack from the episode was also subsequently released on  CD  and audio cassette.


The script was re-recorded in 2009 for a  BBC Radio 2  series of remakes of Galton and Simpson works. "The Blood Donor" starred  Paul Merton , with  Suzy Aitchison  as the nurse, the role played by her mother 48 years earlier. It was first transmitted in March 2009. [ 2 ] [ 3 ]


The  Blood Emergency Readiness Corps  (known as "BERC" or the "BERC Program") consists of 38 U.S.-based community blood centers that work together to provide an emergency reserve of  blood products  to respond to a mass shooting or mass casualty event. The program is administered by the  Alliance for Community Transfusion Services (ACTS) . To date, the BERC reserve has responded to supply blood products needed as a result of the  Collierville Kroger shooting  ( Collierville , TN), the  2021 Oxford High School shooting  ( Oxford Township , MI), the  Tornado outbreak in the Mississippi Valley of December 10–11, 2021 , the  Robb Elementary School Shooting  ( Uvalde , TX) on May 14, 2022, the tornado outbreak sequence primarily impacting  Perrytown , TX in the  Texas Panhandle  on June 15, 2023, the  tornado outbreak in North Texas  on May 26, 2024, the  ransomware attack  impacting the blood supply in the southeast U.S. on July 30, 2024, the flooding in southwest Florida as a result of  Hurricane Debby  on August 5, 2024, the blood needs as a result of  Hurricane Milton  making landfall in southwest Florida on October 9, 2024, and the  New Orleans Terrorist Attack  of January 1, 2025.. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 6 ] [ 7 ] [ 8 ] [ 9 ] [ 10 ] [ 11 ]


The following blood centers are participants in the program:


Blood transfusion  was first performed in  Sri Lanka  in late 1950. [ 1 ]  It became more widely known to the public in 1959 after the assassination of  Prime Minister   S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike , when an appeal was made to the public to  donate blood . [ 1 ]  The country's  blood bank  system has since expanded from a single initial site to multiple blood donation centres and laboratories nationwide, operating under the auspices of the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS). [ 1 ]  As of 2014, the NBTS collects over 350,000 voluntary blood donations every year. [ 2 ]


Initially, there was only one blood bank in Sri Lanka, confined to a room close to the surgical unit of the  National Hospital of Sri Lanka  (NHSL). [ 1 ]  In 1960, the NHSL blood bank was shifted to its current building, near the hospital's main entrance. In 1967, a "red donor booklet" was introduced as a certificate for free blood donors. Other donors were paid a minimum of 10  rupees  for each donation. [ 1 ]  In 1968, the blood bank was semi-decentralized under the Sri Lankan Ministry of Health and placed under the direction of a superintendent blood transfusion service. It had a staff of 124 at that time. [ 1 ]


In 1979, paid donation was discontinued and voluntary donation was encouraged to ensure the safety of collected blood. In 1980, the number of hospital-based blood banks reached 20, and 12 emergency bleeding centres were also established. Mobile blood donation programs were initiated with two mobile blood collection teams. [ 1 ]


By 1982, volunteer non-remunerated blood donations accounted for 97% of all transfusions, and the "Anti A1"  reagent  was manufactured for the first time in Sri Lanka using  kollu seeds . [ 1 ]  In 1985, disposable plastic bags were introduced to all Sri Lankan blood banks. Screening of blood for  hepatitis B  was initiated. In 1987, the emergence of  AIDS  led to the introduction of screening of all collected blood for  HIV  1 and 2 antibodies. In 1988, the Central Blood Bank's component laboratory facility was extended to some of the larger blood banks ( Colombo  North and  Kandy ). [ 1 ]


In 1990, the component laboratory facility was further extended to blood banks at  Karapitiya ,  Kurunegala , CI  Maharagama ,  Peradeniya ,  Anuradhapura ,  Matara  and  Badulla . By this time there were 32 blood banks and 10 emergency bleeding centres. [ 1 ]  The Central Blood Bank functioned as the training centre for medical and paramedical personnel of the National Blood Transfusion Service (NBTS). In 1999, the headquarters of the NBTS were established at the National Blood Centre, absorbing most of the vital laboratories and the majority of the staff from the Central Blood Bank. The NBTS thus became a fully  decentralized  unit. [ 1 ]


In 2009, a distributed network of cluster centres was established, and more authority was given to these cluster centres for effective delivery of blood collection and transfusion services to various parts of the country. [ 1 ]  In 2012, the  Anura Bandaranaike  Memorial Blood Bank was opened in Wathupitiwela. [ 3 ]  In June 2014, Sri Lanka hosted the  World Blood Donor Day , with the theme "Safe Blood for Saving Mothers". [ 2 ] [ 4 ]


A  bloodmobile  is a mobile  blood donation  center. It is a vehicle (usually a bus or a large van) equipped with everything necessary for a blood donation procedure. Blood drives involving bloodmobiles usually happen in public places such as colleges and churches. [ 1 ]


Often large employers will sponsor mobile blood drives and allow employees a few hours off of work to donate blood. In addition, many  high schools  hold annual blood drives which allow students aged 16 and over to donate blood with a signed permission form. Typically students are offered snacks,  T-shirts , or time out of class as an incentive, as well as positive  peer pressure .


The first bloodmobiles were created by  Dr. Charles Drew , an African-American leader in the field, in 1941, making it particularly ironic that African-American blood was first rejected and then accepted only when kept separate from White blood. [ 2 ]


By the 1950s the  American Red Cross  ran mobile blood units that gave people a community-based location at which to donate. These mobile units were very efficient, with a large Red Cross truck staffed by two men arriving at an empty location and setting up for the first donation, which would be taken two hours later. The truck would be loaded with at least ten beds, mattresses, dozens of screens and chairs, waste receptacles, tables, stools, huge refrigerated boxes, canvas bags of ice, coffee urns, orange juice, canteen equipment, hundreds of blood bottles, boxes of sterile supplies, bottles of solution, literature and record forms, oxygen tanks, and sheets. The men would have this unloaded and set up on site in less than an hour. [ citation needed ]


Once setup was complete, nurses, volunteers and doctors arrived. There were normally six nurses and 15 volunteers. The nurses did their preliminary tasks while the volunteers split off into groups. One group unpacked and set up the reception area. Another group set up the canteen and prepared food for after donations. The third group set up the blood bottle table where the blood would be tagged, numbered, and recorded. [ citation needed ]


When the site opened, donors would enter via the reception area to answer questionnaires which determined whether they were eligible to donate. Once accepted, a donor was taken through to the nurse, who would take blood pressure and perform other tests. The donor then went to the next nurse, who took the blood. If the donor had a reaction while donating, they went to the recovery room where they went under the care of the doctor until they had fully recovered. If the donor did not have a reaction, they would go to the canteen for refreshments.


In the 1950s, mobile blood units like this would collect from 200 donors in six hours. [ 3 ]


Erythrocytapheresis  is an  apheresis  procedure by which  erythrocytes  ( red blood cells ) are separated from whole blood.  It is an extracorporeal blood separation method whereby whole blood is extracted from a donor or patient, the red blood cells are separated, and the remaining blood is returned to circulation.


For the separation of erythrocytes, whole blood is passed through an apparatus that isolates the red blood cells from the remaining components.  In erythrocytapheresis,  centrifugation  is the most commonly used red blood cell fractionation method.  This is because the  hematocrit , or the percentage of blood volume taken up by red blood cells, is present in the highest percentage of all blood cell components in the solid portion of blood.  Therefore, since erythrocytes have the highest specific weight in comparison to other solids in blood, they can easily be separated using centrifugation.  Whole blood is spun down in a spinning bowl centrifuge and the bottom layer, concentrated with erythrocytes, sediments to the bottom.  These are separated and the rest of the blood can be retransfused.


Centrifugal sedimentation is the most used process by which erythrocytapheresis occurs.  In this method, patient or donor blood is collected and processed into an erythrocyte concentrate with a high hematocrit content.  This exhausted, pre-filtered blood is collected in a suitable reservoir and pumped into a rotating centrifuge.  The centrifugal force will separate the red blood cells from other cells due to their high specific weight.  These cells can then be collected.  A separate washing step will lead to the removal of plasma parts which will further purify and concentrate erythrocytes.  The remaining blood, consisting of blood plasma, leukocytes, platelets, stem cells, lipids, and other solids will then be retransfused into the patient or donor.


The advancement of centrifugation and membrane filtration methods is essential to the development of erythrocytapheresis.  In addition, blood separation on microdevices containing capillary channels has been identified as a potential blood cell fractionation method. [ citation needed ]   Other plasma and blood cell separation techniques are being explored based on  magnetophoresis ,  electrophoresis , microchannel bends, and ultrasound standing waves. [ citation needed ]


Therapeutic erythrocytapheresis is commonly used to remove red blood cells in patients experiencing sickle cell crisis.  The affected erythrocytes are removed while the rest of the blood is retransfused.  This blood separation is also used in patients with severe malaria.  After removal of the affected cells, the patient can then be transfused with a dose of normal red blood cells.


Erythrocytapheresis can also be used for blood donations.  The procedure is commonly done using automated red blood cell collection which involves the removal of two units of red blood cells.  This includes either two standard units of red blood cells or one unit plus of red blood cells and another of either plasma or platelets.  The advantage to the donor is the use of smaller needles and saline compensation, as well as more convenient donating schedules (the no-donation period following apheresis is twice as long as that for a single unit). The advantage to the blood bankers is the on-line separation into standardized RBC masses with the subsequent reduction in testing, data entry and staffing. This process is commonly referred to as 'power reds', 'double reds' or 'double red cell apheresis'. [ 1 ]


Greater Manchester Blood Bikes  – a UK charity providing courier services for the transportation of urgent and emergency medical items such as  blood ,  human milk ,  platelets , samples,  vaccines , operating in  Greater Manchester . [ 3 ] [ 1 ]


The group, originally set up in 2011, [ 4 ]  closed operations and transferred their assets along with the "on call" phone number to a new charity, registered as a  charitable incorporated organisation  in November 2022. [ 1 ]  Having started operations on 1 January 2023, the new group covers the same geographical area and is composed of experienced volunteers from Blood Bikes Manchester (also known as NorthWest Blood Bikes Manchester). [ 4 ]


In 2019, the charity estimated to had saved the  NHS  and hospices £341,350 in six years and was recognised by the government as an emergency service who alleviated high night-time costs of couriers and taxis. [ 5 ]  In October 2021, the charity was covering 1700+ miles per week on 4 motorcycles and a car which was used in inclement weather conditions. [ 3 ]  In December 2021, with 57 volunteers, the annual costs were £37,029. [ 4 ]  GMBB raise funds from donors, [ 6 ]  at charity events, [ 7 ]  from bucket collections, [ 8 ]  and online through  PayPal ,  Just Giving , Buy Me a Coffee and Easy Fundraising. [ 9 ]


The motorcycle and car rides are provided by volunteers at night, daytime weekends and bank holidays. [ 10 ]  The vehicles are marked with the word BLOOD in front and covered in yellow and orange liveries allowing them to stand out despite missing blue lights. The riders are not allowed to exceed speed limits or go through red lights but hold advanced driving qualifications. [ 11 ]  Riders operate from home, working with a duty controller who acts as a dispatcher taking calls and dispatching the riders. They aim for a 90-minute service from receiving a call to delivering the cargo. On each shift, there are at least two riders and one car. [ 11 ]


GMBB work with several hospitals in the area, including  Salford Royal ,  Wythenshawe Hospital ,  Tameside General Hospital  and  Stepping Hill , [ 11 ]  and deliver blood to  North West Air Ambulance  helicopters based at  Barton Aerodrome  and  Blackpool Airport . [ 12 ]


James Christopher Harrison   OAM  (born 27 December 1936), also known as the  Man with the Golden Arm , is a  blood plasma  donor [ 2 ]  from Australia whose plasma contains antibodies against RhD which are used in making a treatment for  Rhesus disease . One of the founding donors of  New South Wales ' (NSW) Rh Program, he regularly donated until, on 11 May 2018, he made his 1,173rd donation [ 3 ] [ 4 ]  – his last, as Australian policy then prohibited blood donations from those past age 81. [ 5 ]


James Harrison was born on 27 December 1936. [ 6 ]  In 1951, at the age of 14, he underwent major chest surgery, requiring a large amount of blood. Realizing that the blood had saved his life, he made a pledge to start donating blood himself as soon as he turned 18, the then-required age. [ 7 ] [ 8 ]


Harrison started donating in 1954. After the first few donations, it was discovered that his blood contained unusually strong and persistent antibodies against the  D Rh group antigen . Blood which contains a high level of anti-D antibodies can be processed to create immunoglobulin-based products used to prevent  haemolytic disease of the newborn  (HDN). These products are given to Rh(D) negative mothers of unknown or Rh(D) positive babies during and after pregnancy to prevent the creation of antibodies to the blood of the Rh(D) positive child. This antigen sensitization and subsequent incompatibility phenomenon causes  Rhesus disease , the most common form of HDN. [ 4 ]


Harrison was one of the founding donors in NSW's Rh Program, one of the first in the world in 1969, and he had continuously donated from then onwards. As blood plasma, in contrast with blood, can be donated as often as once every two weeks, he was able to reach his 1,000th donation in May 2011. This resulted in an average of one donation every three weeks across 57 years. Commenting on his record, he said: "I could say it's the only record that I hope is broken, because if they do, they have donated a thousand donations". [ 2 ]  On 11 May 2018, he made his 1,173rd and last donation in compliance with Australian policy prohibiting blood donations from those past age 81. [ 5 ]


Through their donations, the members of NSW's Rh Program have provided millions of doses of anti-D and helped prevent thousands of deaths and stillbirths, as well as many more instances of sickness and disability caused by HDN. Over his lifetime, Harrison's donations amounted to tens of thousands of doses worth of antibodies and had contributed to every batch of anti-D produced in NSW. [ 4 ]


Research is also being done on creating a mixture of  monoclonal antibodies , antibodies made by immortalised B cells in bioreactors, that matches what is naturally produced in the bodies of donors such as Harrison. The project has been colloquially called "James in a Jar". [ 9 ]


In 2007, Harrison was critical of plans to open up Australia's plasma donation to foreign corporations. He believes that opening up the trade will discourage volunteer donations. This opening of trade stemmed from a review of the country's free trade agreement with the  United States . [ 10 ]


Harrison was awarded the  Medal of the Order of Australia  (OAM) on 7 June 1999. [ 11 ]  In 2011, he was nominated in the New South Wales Local Hero division of the Australian of the Year awards. [ 6 ]


The  Imam Hussain AS  Blood Donation Campaign  (IHBDC) is a voluntary campaign.


It aims to encourage more Muslims to give blood with the mission statement "create a world where every able Muslim saves lives by donating blood regularly" [ 1 ]


It is the first national campaign in the UK which specifically aims to motivate Muslims to join the Blood Register by holding bespoke blood donation sessions throughout the year. Since its inception, it has grown to involve 26 cities across the UK with 3,408 successful donations and has run popular sessions at the  Islamic Centre of England  and KSIMC. [ 1 ] [ 2 ]  It has also expanded to feature 16 cities outside of the UK.


The campaign is one of several projects organised by the  Islamic Unity Society , a UK registered charity run by volunteers. The IHBDC works in conjunction with  NHS Blood and Transplant  to arrange sessions for people to donate. [ 3 ]


The Campaign was first launched in January 2006 in Manchester. 23 people were successful in donating blood. The campaign was well received by both the Muslim community and the NHS Blood and Transplant, which was then the National Blood Service (NBS). The following year the campaign took place in  London ,  Glasgow ,  Birmingham  and its hometown of  Manchester  with 50 successful blood donations. The donor sessions are held throughout the year and the busiest time is during the time of Muharram when the death of  Husayn ibn Ali , grandson of the  Prophet Muhammed  is commemorated. The campaign was inspired by the sacrifice of  Husayn ibn Ali  and tries to use his stance as motivation for others to make their own significant sacrifice by donating blood. During the last 10 years, the campaign has saved many lives by providing blood packs to the patients. [ 4 ]   In July 2016 British Muslims across London celebrated the 10th anniversary of the IHDBC by donating blood. [ 5 ]