Blood Donations Save Lives
January is National Blood Donation Month
Blood Donor Awareness Month is observed every January in the United States to raise awareness about the importance of blood donation and to encourage more people to donate blood regularly. The goal of the month is to highlight the critical need for blood and the positive impact blood donations can have on saving lives.
After undergoing an intensive surgery to remove a cancerous tumor, Bayhealth Oncology Patient Jason Burlew has a deeper appreciation for those who donate blood.
According to the Red Cross, every two seconds, someone in the U.S. needs blood. It’s essential for surgeries, cancer treatments, trauma care and for patients with certain conditions like sickle cell anemia. Unfortunately, there is often a shortage of donated blood, especially in certain blood types.
Jason Burlew, marketing manager, Blood Bank of Delmarva, benefitted from blood donations during surgery in 2021 to remove cancer from his adrenal gland. His oncologist was Rishi Sawhney, MD, at Bayhealth Hematology-Oncology Associates and had his surgery performed at the University of Pennsylvania.
“Dr. Sawhney and Nurse Navigator Renee Hall, RN, provided me with as much data and information as they could about this type of cancer, which is one of the rarest in the world, and my surgeon was extremely careful when removing the large tumor to ensure he removed all of the cancerous cells,” Burlew explained.
Burlew knew going into the surgery that it was almost a certainty that he would need to receive blood. His tumor had grown to be nearly a foot long and it needed to come out in one piece. “The surgeon had to take it out through my stomach, so my incision runs from just below my sternum down to my waist. My surgeon also removed my left kidney since it shared a blood supply with the cancerous adrenal gland. Due to all of that intricate surgical work and the removal of two organs, the procedure was extremely lengthy, and there was no way my body could have made it through the duration of the procedure without receiving blood.”
Adrenal cancer has a really low mortality rate in general, and without being able to have blood transfusions during the surgery, there is no way he would have survived. “Donated blood is one of the reasons I am still here today and able to share my story,” said Burlew.
Burlew was a blood donor before he had this cancer. He first donated with Blood Bank of Delmarva in 2004, and made sporadic donations through 2012. Since 2012, he has been a regular donor, averaging four donations per year. In 2020, during the pandemic, he made a concerted effort to donate every 56 days, was able to make six donations at Blood Bank of Delmarva's Dover Donor Center in one calendar year. He currently has 38 lifetime donations.
“I originally became a blood donor just out of sheer curiosity about the entire process. It really interested me how I could give my own blood to help someone else and also how your body replenishes that donated blood in a relatively short amount of time,” he added. “I started realizing just how easy it was to help other people — less than an hour out of my time every 56 days allowed me to help someone. You don't have to be able to give money, just a little time.”
Once he had his cancer surgery and had transfused blood, Burlew was deferred from donating blood for a year (it had to be a full year of clear follow-up tests, so it would've been longer if there had been a reoccurrence of the cancer anywhere in his body). To celebrate, he donated blood again one year and 10 days from his cancer surgery - which was his birthday.
“A year earlier, that birthday wasn't guaranteed, but thanks in part to the generosity of blood donors, I was able to see that next birthday,” Burlew commented. “I've continued to be a regular blood donor since, both to pay back those donors who helped save my life and to be able to give others the ability to see another birthday.”
Donating blood is a simple, safe, and relatively quick process. Eligibility criteria may vary by region, but generally, healthy individuals who are at least 17 years old and weigh at least 110 pounds can donate blood. Blood donors can give every 56 days, and platelet donors can give twice per month. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently lifted several blood donor eligibility restrictions.
To view current eligibility guidelines, or to make an appointment at a location near you, donors can visit delmarvablood.org or call 1-888-8-BLOOD-8.