Blood Donation News and Research

RSS

Black Canadians face significant systemic barriers to donating critical blood

Black people in Canada who want to donate blood face barriers to doing so, despite a critical need for specific blood types to treat sickle cell disease, according to new research published in CMAJ.

24 Aug 2026

New study tracks early genetic changes in hepatitis E virus

Knowing how viruses change in the initial weeks of an infection can provide important information about their adaptability.

13 Jul 2026

Double strategy of blood donation and early screening offers hope for families

Thalassemia management relies on blood donations and prevention strategies, crucial for reducing the disease's impact on families and healthcare systems.

From BGI Genomics 15 Jun 2026

WHO data shows progress and persistent gaps in safe blood supply

New data from the World Health Organization (WHO) show sustained progress towards safer blood supplies globally but also highlight persistent inequalities in access to safe blood and weaknesses in governance, financing and regulation of blood systems.

12 Jun 2026

Requests for “unvaccinated” blood lead to delays and patient harm

The trend for unvaccinated blood donations raises concerns about patient safety and resource efficiency, emphasizing the need for better transfusion protocols.

6 Apr 2026

Doctors urge smarter use of universal donor blood amid shortages

As blood banks across the U.S. report dangerously low supplies of O-negative blood (red blood cells) - commonly called the "universal donor" - anesthesiologists are calling for increased donation and changes in how hospitals use the "universal donor" blood type, according to a new Innovation in Practice article published online in Anesthesiology Open, an official journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA).

19 Mar 2026

Highlighting the global "care gap" in life-threatening injuries

A new international study published in The Lancet eClinicalMedicine has mapped global blood transfusion practices for life-threatening abdominal injuries, highlighting significant variation in care worldwide and opportunities for health systems to learn from one another.

4 Mar 2026

Study reveals what drives PFAS exposure in firefighters and how risks may be reduced

A large U.S. firefighter cohort study identified personal, occupational, and department-level predictors of serum PFAS concentrations, highlighting both modifiable exposures and persistent background sources. Some protective practices, blood or plasma donation, and drinking water sources were associated with differences in specific PFAS analytes, although causal relationships require further longitudinal study.

4 Feb 2026

Study maps highest hemochromatosis risk in Celtic populations

People from the Outer Hebrides and north-west Ireland have the highest risk of developing a genetic disease that causes a dangerous build-up of iron in the body, a study suggests.

3 Feb 2026

Non-monetary incentives boost blood donation without harming safety

Offering non-monetary incentives such as free access to outpatient consultations to frequent blood donors is linked to an increase in donations without compromising blood safety, finds a study from China published by The BMJ today.

21 Jan 2026

Parkinson’s disease may stem from iron starvation rather than iron overload

This perspective argues that Parkinson’s disease may involve functional iron deficiency, where bioavailable iron is limited despite normal or elevated total iron in the brain. The authors propose that iron sequestration, not iron toxicity alone, may impair dopamine synthesis and neuronal survival.

6 Jan 2026

Nasal bacteria influence Staphylococcus aureus colonization

People who persistently carry Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) in their nose have fewer species of other bacteria, while certain bacteria may help to prevent S. aureus colonisation.

2 Dec 2025

New survey reveals Americans' perception of the growing need for plasma-derived medicines

International Plasma Awareness Week (IPAW) takes place globally from October 6-10. The week encourages communities around the world to recognize the vital role of plasma in creating lifesaving medicines and honors those who donate.

6 Oct 2025

Study identifies genetic changes in blood stem cells of frequent blood donors

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have identified genetic changes in blood stem cells from frequent blood donors that support the production of new, non-cancerous cells.

11 Mar 2025

FDA ensures blood safety through five layers of safeguards

Every day, hospitals throughout the U.S. transfuse blood or blood components, such as platelets, to save the lives of people who are in car crashes, and victims of fires and other emergencies.

20 Feb 2025

WHO reports alarming attacks on health care in Lebanon

Since the escalation of hostilities between Israel and Lebanon on 17 September 2024, WHO has verified 23 attacks on health care in Lebanon that have led to 72 deaths and 43 injuries among health workers and patients.

15 Oct 2024

How Epstein-Barr virus shapes immune responses in multiple sclerosis

Study found that EBV-specific immune responses in MS patients showed higher IgG titers and cell-mediated reactions to EBV antigens compared to healthy controls, suggesting a complex role of EBV in MS development.

9 Jun 2024

Advanced imaging reveals hidden differences in T cell activation

From the outside, most T cells look the same: small and spherical. Now, a team of researchers led by Berend Snijder from the Institute of Molecular Systems Biology at ETH Zurich has taken a closer look inside these cells using advanced techniques.

6 Jun 2024

FDA urged to relax decades-old tissue donation restrictions for gay and bisexual men

The federal government in 2020 and 2023 changed who it said could safely donate organs and blood, reducing the restrictions on men who have had sex with another man.

24 May 2024

Four years after shelter-in-place, covid-19 misinformation persists

From spring break parties to Mardi Gras, many people remember the last major “normal” thing they did before the novel coronavirus pandemic dawned, forcing governments worldwide to issue stay-at-home advisories and shutdowns.

1 Apr 2024