Most blood donations go to cancer patients. Learn how and why blood donations help cancer patients in this free video clip from a blood donation center.
Barry Hooker has been working for the American Red Cross for 25 years. Currently, he is the director of recruitment for his region.
We're told most of our blood products go toward the treatment of cancer. And when most people give blood, they're thinking about the sirens they're seeing, the sirens they hear. You know that's where my blood is going, is for that car wreck victim that's happened yesterday or today. As I'm coming to work, I see all the wrecks and that's where my blood is going. Believe it or not, most blood products goes towards cancer treatments today, because once folks have cancer the treatments they receive, really some of them can destroy your ability to make red cells. So, you need the rejuvenation of that blood coming back in, that's fresh, that's new to you, to build your oxygen carrying ability. To give you the white cells back that will help fight off infections. To give you the platelets you need to stop bleeding. If you happen to cut yourself shaving in the morning, you need those platelets, believe it or not, to help you stop bleeding. And that's what a unit of red cells or a unit of platelets or a unit of plasma can do for you. As a patient in the hospital, that's what that blood does for you. It brings back life to you and also you hear a lot about
