Special July 11 Blood Drive in San Jose Will Benefit Stanford Blood Center

July 2010
Attention News Desk: Press Release (for immediate release)
MEDIA CONTACT:
Michele Hyndman (650) 723-8237
mhyndman@stanford.edu

STANFORD, Calif. — On July 11, Bob and Cristal Hernandez will hold the second annual Ava’s Blood Drive with Stanford Blood Center in memory of their daughter. The blood drive will take place at their home in the 700 block of Pronto Drive in San Jose between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Ava Hernandez was two weeks shy of her fourth birthday when she passed away from neuroblastoma, an aggressive cancer of the nervous system that affects infants and young children. Ava was diagnosed with the disease when she was 10 months old and received several blood transfusions over the course of her treatment at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford.

To show their support of blood donors and the donation process, the Hernandezes dedicated the blood drive to their daughter. “Ava’s disease and treatment required her to have well over 100 transfusions,” Cristal Hernandez said. “We were always thankful that there was blood available for Ava. Many people depend on blood donations every day.”

Last year’s drive collected 71 units of blood. This year, the goal is to collect 100 units for local patients.

“This is an amazing San Jose community blood drive where people come together to honor Ava and help save the lives of other patients who depend this precious gift,” said center spokesperson Michele Hyndman.

Donors can call (650) 723-7831 or toll-free (888) 723-7831 to make an appointment and get directions. Donors should be in good health with no cold or flu symptoms. They must eat well prior to donation, drink fluids and present photo identification at the time of donation. The process takes about an hour.

For more information or to schedule an appointment online, please visit https://bloodcenter-stg.stanford.edu.

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The Stanford University School of Medicine consistently ranks among the nation’s top medical schools, integrating research, medical education, patient care and community service. For more news about the school, please visit http://mednews.stanford.edu. The medical school is part of Stanford Medicine, which includes Stanford Hospital & Clinics and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. For information about all three, please visit http://stanfordmedicine.org/about/news.html.