Types of Donations

1. Whole Blood
2. Autologous
3. Directed
4. Aphaeresis
5. Plasma
6. Platelets
7. Stem cell donations

1. Whole Blood Donations:

• The process whereby whole blood is collected from volunteer donors
• The actual blood donation takes only a few minutes
• About 450 ml are collected
• Can be made every 56 days providing donors meet basic eligibility requirements

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2. Autologous Donations:

• The process whereby a patient’s own blood is collected and stored until transfusion is needed for surgery
• An evaluation by the patient’s own physician/surgeon is required
• Satisfaction of Canadian Blood Services’ general eligibility requirements is mandatory (with some exceptions)
• Unlike regular whole blood donations, an autologous donor can donate up to four times within four weeks and up to seven days before surgery
• Autologous Donations are subject to provincial health policy

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3. Directed Donations:

• The process whereby the blood is collected from a specific donor to a specific recipient
• Directed Donations are not generally supported in Canada as they have not been proven to be safer than regular whole blood donations, for recipients
• Currently, Canadian Blood Services will provide directed donations from parent(s)/legal guardian(s) to a minor child.
• Availability is subject to provincial health policy

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4. Aphaeresis Donations:

• The process whereby blood is separated into components, allowing only a specific part to be removed
• During donation, an anticoagulant is added to the blood to prevent clotting while outside of the body
• Some of the fluid is returned to the donor, causing tingling around the mouth or coldness during donation

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5. Plasma Donations:

• The process of collecting plasma
• Takes about 30-45 minutes
• Plasma is used to maintain blood volume, blood pressure and preventing infections and/or excessive bleeding
• Plasma can be donated twice in seven days provided a minimum of 48 hours between donation, to a maximum of 26 times in six months

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6. Platelet Donations:

• The process where a donor’s blood is processed through an aphaeresis machine for the purpose of extracting only platelets.
• Takes about two hours
• A plateletphaeresis donation is about 300 ml.
• Platelets are one of the components that make blood clot
• Platelets can be donated every 14 days

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7. Stem Cell Donations:

• Involves the harvesting of stem cells from a donor, through a needle, and transfusing it into a patient
• An initial blood test is required, which is then registered in the OneMatch Stem Cell and Marrow Network
• If an initial match is made with any specimen on the registry, further testing is required
• Bone marrow is the tissue at the soft centre of our bones that produces blood cells and is rich in stem cells
• It is used to treat illnesses such as leukemia and aplastic anemia