Call for 2,000-plus more donors

One man's story: At least 2,000 new blood donors are being sought to donate platelets to cancer and leukaemia patients.

Platelets are essential to help blood to clot properly and are needed by many people undergoing chemotherapy as they can be prone to spontaneous bleeding.

Some 1,200 people are on the Irish Blood Transfusion Service's (IBTS) panel for platelet donation but, because of increased demand, the service needs at least 2,000 more donors. Most platelet donations go to cancer patients but they are also needed by newborn babies and patients undergoing major surgery.

The Irish Cancer Society joined with the IBTS yesterday to call for more people to become platelet donors. Platelets can be donated at the National Blood Centre at St James' Hospital in Dublin, or at St Finbarr's Hospital in Cork. The process takes under an hour and is usually done once a month.

However, women who have experienced pregnancy cannot donate platelets, as they may be carrying antibodies.

Dr Paul Browne, consultant haematologist at St James's Hospital, said the demand for platelets had increased in recent years, largely because of the success of various cancer treatments and the increased range for which platelet transfusions could be used.

Dr William Murphy, medical director of the IBTS, said it hoped to move fully to apheresis (a more efficient way of collecting platelets). This separates the platelets from the rest of the blood, but during donation instead of afterwards. One apheresis donation collects as many platelets as 12 whole blood donations.

Brian Daly from Celbridge, Co Kildare, started donating blood 25 years ago, when he was a student. "At the back of my mind, I was thinking I was going to get a free glass of Guinness at the end of it all," he said. "But it was only afterwards that it came home to me that I had helped somebody along the road towards surviving illness."

Mr Daly later began donating platelets and found that his donations were being used for children with cancer. So, he said, it was ironic that his son, Ian (11), died from cancer three years ago.

"It really brought home to me - what would happen if there were no platelets, if there weren't enough donors?"

Morgan Hackett (44) believes platelet donations saved his life. Mr Hackett, from Ballinteer in Dublin, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma in 2000 and with leukaemia in 2005.

He said he was embarrassed to say he had never given blood but had received so many blood products since he became ill. The treatment "put previous treatments for Non-Hodgkin's in the shade", he said, due to its intensity and severity.

He underwent two months of intense chemotherapy in a secluded room. Visitors were banned. "I could not have committed to my chemotherapy without the blood products, including platelets, being available. I simply would not have survived."

He said the leukaemia treatment took about one year out of his life and was extremely harrowing. "This is the sort of healing that nature never intended."At one point, he was given electrical shock treatment.

"Thank God I am still alive and things are looking good."

For more information on becoming a platelet donor, text "platelet" to 53377 or call the IBTS at 01-4322833. The Irish Cancer Society website is www.irishcancer.ie