Find the hero in you by becoming a pheresis donor!

In a traditional blood donation, donors give whole blood—which consists of red cells, plasma and platelets. With the automated process called pheresis, donors can give a specific component in greater quantities than can be collected in a whole blood donation.

During pheresis, whole blood is collected from one arm and goes into a machine called a “cell separator.” The machine separates the components and collects a measured amount of the desired component into a special bag. Then the other components are returned to the donor. In some pheresis donations, more than one component is collected.

Platelet pheresis donation: Platelets help control bleeding. They are used in large quantities, and over extended periods of time, by leukemia, cancer, aplastic anemia and marrow transplant patients. Platelets also are used during surgery to help stop bleeding.
The entire plateletpheresis donation takes less than two hours. This includes the health interview, approximately one hour and 20 minutes for the actual donation and time for light refreshments afterwards. Your body is able to replenish its supply of platelets very quickly. You may donate platelets by pheresis as frequently as every seven days, but no more than 24 times in a calendar year.

Along with meeting the criteria for whole blood donors, platelet donors have two added restrictions:

• NO ASPIRIN or anything containing aspirin or PIROXICAM (Feldene) can be taken 72 hours before donation
• NO PLAVIX (clopidogrel) or TICLID (Ticlopidine) can be taken in the 14 days before donation

Call your local United Blood Services center for further information on becoming a platelet pheresis donor.

Plasma pheresis donation: Plasma is the liquid portion of your blood and is used in the treatment of bleeding, clotting problems and trauma. It can also be transfused to help organ transplant recipients and premature infants.
We invite type AB-positive men to consider plasma pheresis donation. AB-positive is the “universal plasma type” and, in an emergency, it can be transfused to people of any blood type. Plasma from male donors is less likely to carry certain antibodies, and this is important for plasma transfusion.

The entire plasma pheresis donation takes less than 90 minutes. This includes the health interview, approximately 60 minutes for the actual donation and time for light refreshments afterwards. Your body is able to replenish its supply of plasma very quickly. You may donate plasma by pheresis as frequently as every four weeks.

Call your local United Blood Services center for further information on becoming a plasma pheresis donor.

Double red cell donation: Red cells are the blood component that is transfused most often. Red cells are used to treat anemia that results from surgery, injury or disease.
Blood donors who give four or six times a year like double red cell donation because they can cut their visits to the blood center in half, and still do just as much good for the community. People who give blood two or three times a year can stay on that same schedule, but double the effectiveness of their blood donation.

We invite type O donors to consider double red cell donation. O-positive is the most common blood type and O-negative is the “universal blood type” because, in an emergency, it can be transfused to people of any blood type. Double red cell donation helps us maintain a strong supply of type O blood.

Along with meeting the regular blood donor qualifications, double red cell donors must meet special requirements. Men must weigh at least 130 lbs. and be at least 5'1", while women must weigh at least 150 lbs., and be at least 5'5" tall. Those qualifications might seem backwards, but they’re not. That’s because men’s bodies carry a greater blood volume than women’s bodies. So, generally speaking, a man who is 5'1" and weighs 130 has about the same blood volume as a woman who is 5'5" and weighs 150. Our qualifications are based on blood volume—which we’ve translated to height and weight.

Click here to schedule a double red cell donation.