In Our Blood

Over the next five years, a million new blood donors will be needed in order to meet the needs of patients.

But the need for Black African and Black Caribbean donors is strongest of all. Conditions like sickle cell disorder – which predominantly affects people of Black heritage – are treated with regular blood transfusions and require very closely matched blood.

The need for blood

This year, 16,600 new Black donors are needed to enable the NHS to provide patients with better-matched blood transfusions and reduce health inequalities.

More than half of Black donors have a blood subtype called Ro which is vital in treating patients with sickle cell. Demand for blood to treat sickle cell has risen by 52 per cent over the past five years and is projected to continue to rise.

Launched to coincide with Black History Month, the #InOurBlood campaign aims to highlight the power the Black community has to treat sickle cell and provide life-changing blood donations.

Together, we can help people with sickle cell and overcome the stigma around what is the fastest-growing genetic disorder in the UK.

“It's like something crushing my bones”

Sickle cell causes red blood cells to form into sickle or crescent shapes and become stuck in blood vessels, causing agonising crisis episodes, and serious or even fatal long term complications including organ damage and strokes. Many patients need regular blood transfusions to stay alive.

Oyesola Oni, 39, needs all her blood replaced by donor blood every five weeks due to sickle cell.

Her condition is so severe she could easily suffer a stroke or organ damage, with potentially fatal consequences.

The mother of one from Nottingham said: “During a sickle cell crisis, it’s like someone is stabbing me, at other times it’s like something crushing my bones. It’s excruciating.”

She added: "Every few weeks the hospital needs to remove all my sickled cells and replace them with donor blood.

“The need for blood never stops. The demand keeps increasing. I was moved from eight pints of blood every six weeks up to 10 pints every five weeks.

“I would urge people of Black heritage to step out and donate. It’s in your blood to help people like me.”

To ensure that the supply of well-matched blood with subtypes like Ro is guaranteed to sickle cell patients, many more blood donors are needed from Black backgrounds.

Not family, but blood

By using the #InOurBlood hashtag, you can help to recruit more Black blood donors and help people with sickle cell to have the closely-matched blood they need to stay well and free of pain. We might not all be family, but we are connected by blood.

You can use social media or word of mouth to share your donation photos and messages of encouragement to inspire your friends, family and colleagues to inspire them to register as donors too. Saving lives is in our hands and #InOurBlood.

Dr Rekha Anand, consultant in transfusion medicine said: “Matched blood is vital for sickle cell patients to reduce the risk of serious complications, and Black people are more likely to be able to donate matched blood.

“There has been a small rise in Black people donating blood, but we urgently need more to become regular donors. Giving blood is easy, quick and safe – and you will save and improve lives.”

Living with sickle cell

More opportunities to donate

In 2021, after review, we updated the questions donors are asked before they give blood. The Donor Safety Check no longer asks whether a donor’s partner has ever had sex in areas where HIV is endemic, which includes most of Sub-Saharan Africa.

All donors are now asked the same questions about recent sexual behaviours and they are eligible to donate if the risk of past or recently-acquired infection is low.

All of which means there are now more opportunities to donate while maintaining world-class standards in patient and donor safety.

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