PEOPLE across Oxfordshire are being urged to “give the gift of life” during National Blood Week.

This week the Oxford Mail is calling on its readers to make a difference to those most in need, by donating blood at centres across the county.

According to NHS Blood and Transplants, at least 2,000 new donors are needed to meet quotas in the county.

We are also calling on dormant donors to return to centres and possibly save lives by donating regularly.

In Oxfordshire, more than 15,000 donors gave blood at least once last year, but red blood donations have to be used within 35 days.

The call for donors in the county is more important than ever as last year there were 40 per cent fewer new blood donors registered compared to 2004-2005.

Oxford Mail:

 Nurse Annesha Ruiz talks to donor Andy Moore

Now NHS Blood and Transplant, who operate all donation centres in the UK, is looking for 204,000 new donors, and at least 2,000 in the county.

Regular blood donor Andy Moore said: “There’s really no excuse for it, it’s only a There’s really no excuse for it. It’s only a couple of hours and it’s incredibly important REGULAR: Nurse Annesha Ruiz talks to donor Andy Moore couple of hours and it’s incredibly important.”

Donating could not be easier as in March a state-ofthe-art donation centre was re-opened at Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital.

Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, which operates the John Radcliffe and Churchill Hospitals and the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Headington and Banbury’s Horton General, uses an average of 26,500 pints of red blood every year and 3,900 units of platelets.

A lot of the blood used at the John Radcliffe Hospital is donated by people at the Oxford Donor Centre, run by the National Blood Service.

The centre has 3,700 red blood donors registered, and has an average of 40 people donating red blood a day.

Manager of the centre Gayle Franklin said: “In recent years we’ve seen a reduction in the amount of blood needed by hospitals due to the advances in surgery, but our donor base has reduced.

“It’s hugely important for more people to come forward and donate.

“We need to ensure that the blood is there for hospitals in Oxfordshire and around the country.”

Sarah Deegan has been giving blood for nearly 30 years.

The 48-year-old visits the centre every 12 or 16 weeks to give blood.

The mother-of-four said: “I’ve done it since I was 18 and a medical student.

“I didn’t really even think about it, if it’s there to donate then it’s the right thing to do.”

As well as accepting red blood donations, the centre is one of a few in the country that accepts platelet donations used in the treatment of cancer patients and people who have suffered excessive blood loss.

Unlike a regular blood donation, where a single unit is usually used per patients, platelet donations can be used to help up to three adults or 12 children.

As well as helping more people, donors can give more regularly, with the minimal interval being only a fortnight.

The process takes 90 minutes, but is similar to a regular blood donation.

There are 748 platelet donors registered at the centre, some from as far afield as Aylesbury and Reading.

Platelets donor was inspired by nephew’s care at hospital

MILITARY instructor at St Edward’s School in Woodstock Road, Oxford, Simon Frazer, has been giving platelets for the last two years.

He was inspired when his nephew, Archie, was being treated at the neonatal unit at the John Radcliffe Hospital.

Oxford Mail:

 Simon Frazer with centre manager Gayle Franklin

The 47-year-old father-of-two said: “I always used to give blood regularly but when my nephew fell ill, I saw that he was given platelets.

“So I asked how I’d go about becoming a donor and, since then, I’ve come ever since.

“Sadly Archie died but I still donate as much as I can. “In a way he did inspire me to start giving platelets and I continue to do it. It’s just the right thing to do. I like to think that I could be saving a life.”

Platelet donors can give every two weeks, although the process takes about 90 minutes, in comparison to the hour that red blood donations usually take. Oxford is one of 23 centres across England and Wales where people can donate blood platelets.

Mr Frazer said: “It’s only 90 minutes of my time, and that fluid could go to saving 12 babies or a few adults. “There’s no excuse really, you can go and do it in your lunchtime.

“Also it’s right on your doorstep if you live and work in Oxford, it takes no time.” 

Difference it makes is ‘incredible’

BLOOD donations given from people in Oxford are sent away to a centre and then distributed across the country.

More often than not red blood and platelet donations will return to the blood banks at hospitals in the county.

Software developer John Hannawin began giving blood when he was 18, but started giving platelet donations after his friend received transfusions while being treated at the John Radcliffe in Oxford for a malignant brain tumour in 2010.

Oxford Mail:

Keen photographer Anya Muir Wood, 23, received blood transfusions after being diagnosed with a cancerous tumour 

He said: “It’s always been very important to me, but when you see the importance of these transfusions firsthand and the difference it makes, it pushes you to donate.”

One person who may have been helped by the father-of-three is Anya Muir Wood. In 2010, Miss Muir Wood was looking forward to her gap year after being accepted to Cambridge University to study geography.

However, at the age of 18, she was diagnosed with a cancerous tumour on her foot.

Miss Muir Wood, now 23, said: “I had to have surgery and that was followed by nine rounds of chemotherapy and six rounds of radiotherapy.” During the eight-month course of treatment, her health and mobility deteriorated due to the effects of the chemotherapy.

Miss Wood, of Abingdon, added: “The chemotherapy affects your blood, I felt exhausted and just wasn’t able to do anything.”

Cancer treatments like chemotherapy can often reduce haemoglobin in the blood, which transports oxygen around the body. Miss Muir Wood was also diagnosed as anaemic, which meant she had a lack of iron in her blood.

As a result she received three rounds of blood transfusions and a platelet transfusion, which helped her recover from the aggressive chemotherapy treatment.

Miss Muir Wood, who graduated from Downing College last year with a 2.1 degree, said: “It was an incredible feeling being wheeled into hospital and then being able to walk out after [the blood transfusion]. “Having the blood transfusion meant that I could go to university on time.”

The researcher for an Oxford-based documentary production company now campaigns on behalf of NHS Blood and Transplant after her ordeal.

The keen photographer added: “Once you’ve received a blood transfusion you’re not allowed to give blood. “It’s frustrating as the people who most want to give blood – the people who have received it – can’t do it.

“That’s why it’s important for people to be generous now, because once you’ve had it you can’t give back.”

FACTFILE

  •  In Oxfordshire 15,320 people donated at least once between April 2014 and March 2015.
  •  There were 3,210 new donors registered in the county over the course of the last financial year. p The Oxford Donor Centre has 3,700 red blood donors and 748 platelet donors.
  •  Every day, the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital, Horton General Hospital and the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre uses an average of 73 pints of red blood and 11 units of platelet cells a day.
  • Currently, the Oxford Donor Centre takes an average of 40 red blood donations and 30 platelet donations.
  • About 26,500 pints of red blood are used at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust a year, as well as 3,900 units of platelets.
  • Each platelets donation is enough to benefit up to three people. 

WHO CAN DONATE

PEOPLE who are donating blood for the first time must be between 17 and 64 years old and weigh at least 50kg.

A common misconception is that people who have had piercings, tattoos or acupuncture cannot give blood due to the risk of infection.

These people can give blood, but will need to wait up to four months after receiving treatments and an additional blood test may be needed within 12 months of someone having a tattoo, piercing or acupuncture.

Men can donate red blood a maximum of four times a year, whereas women can only give blood once every four months, as they have lower levels of iron in their blood.

Unfortunately, people who have received blood donations after 1980 cannot give blood due to the risk of a disease transferred by blood called variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease.

People who are HIV positive cannot give blood. If you have suffered certain medical conditions such as heart disease or had an abortion you will not be able to give blood.

The same conditions apply for platelets, but an additional test is done to see if donors have a high platelet count.