August 31, 2013 at 5:49 am
Published by Dayna Myers, Contributor
As our regular donors know, blood centers always worry about having enough blood donors in the summer. At Stanford Blood Center, summer means calling our donors more frequently due to the increase in accidents, an uptick in scheduled surgeries, and...
July 30, 2013 at 7:57 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Billie Rubin, reporting from the labs of Stanford Blood Center According to the Coalition for Plasma Science, “Plasma is often called the ‘Fourth State of Matter’, the other three being solid, liquid and gas. A plasma is a distinct...
May 10, 2013 at 2:25 pm
Published by Stanford Blood Center
In January of this year, we discontinued the automated procedure that collected one unit of red blood cells and two units of plasma using the Alyx machine. Later this spring, we will transition...
May 2, 2013 at 9:00 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
Special report from the Stanford Medicine Magazine
"Blood is a very special juice."
Goethe didn't know the half of it when he penned this line for Mephisto more than 200 years ago.
In those days people believed blood held mystical qualities and was a potent life force. No wonder Mephisto wants the contract for Faust's soul signed in this "special juice."
October 9, 2012 at 11:27 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Tim Donald, Contributing Writer, American Association of Blood Banks
Roxanne and Mark decide to donate blood. While they are sitting together in an open waiting room, a nurse asks Roxanne questions about her sexual history and number of partners loud enough for all to hear. They are told their blood will be tested to see whether it is "clean" enough to be used. They spend a sitcom eternity waiting anxiously for the results to learn whether they have any sexually transmitted diseases, or STDs. In the end, someone from the clinic calls each partner to tell them that they do not have STDs. (Source: Whitney, Season 1, Episode 12, "Faking It")
September 5, 2012 at 4:19 pm
Published by Stanford Blood Center
A message from Dr. Susan Galel, Director of Clinical Operations, Stanford Blood Center
If you are one of our dedicated platelet pheresis donors, you know that we keep careful records of how much you donate and how oftenin the familiar Annual Donor Records tucked in your chart. It is our responsibility to ensure that your donation frequency is safe for you. Before each of your donations, we tally all of your visits, red blood cell losses and plasma losses for the 12 months prior to that donation, to be sure that you will not exceed any of the safety limits.
August 28, 2012 at 3:31 pm
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Julie Ruel, Social Media Manager, Stanford Blood Center
At Stanford Blood Center, we collect a combination of blood products (red blood cells, platelets, plasma) using different procedures and equipment. For the scope of this article, we'll focus on two types of red blood cell donations: single unit and double unit.
August 23, 2012 at 8:49 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Dayna Myers, Marketing Communications Manager, Stanford Blood Center
After more than two decades' worth of visits, blood donor David "Mitch" Mitchell hit a unique milestone on August 20 when he became the first person to make 600 donations at Stanford Blood Center.
August 2, 2012 at 4:49 pm
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Julie Ruel, Social Media Manager, Stanford Blood Center
Voluntary blood donors are needed in countries throughout the world to help maintain a safe and sufficient blood supply. Finding these donors is often a challenge for blood centers. So, many advocates have created unusual awareness campaigns to promote the need. Here are some of the most inventive efforts we've seen.
July 3, 2012 at 11:06 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
A Poem by Gil Gonzales, Stanford Blood Center Donor
The greatest of gifts that costs nothing to give
A gift of hope that offers a family a sense of relief
Just a little of your time, so that another may live
A minor inconvenience that spares others major grief
Offering the gift of life from one's own veins
