Why can’t you donate blood if you have had a transfusion in the past

I think you’ve misunderstood this. The sending immediately in an emergency before all tests have finished relates to all tests on the cross match with the recipient.

It doesn’t relate to the screening tests to see if the blood can be used for transfusion. The blood isn’t made available to the hospital to use until all the screening tests are completed by the transfusion service.

Usually there is a full cross match between the donor and recipient to check compatibility and before the transfusion is done, but in a real emergency the recipient is sometimes given the transfusion before this is complete.

This is also why group O negative blood is so valuable - because anyone of any blood type can receive it in an absolute emergency.

Hospitals don’t screen for viruses in blood. You’re probably talking about compatibility testing between the donor blood and the patient.
The blood can’t leave the blood service unless all tests have been completed and are negative, even if it’s an emergency.

It’s blood donated AFTER 1980 not before. it’s people who have had a transfusion since1 January 1980 who can’t donate.

Yes, really. There are situations where the lab is called for blood immediately and they are told to send it whether they've finished all the tests or not. My neighbour worked in the lab of the local hospital and said this happened often.

There is no commercially available test for CJD in blood.

Really????

Emergency blood, goes through as many tests as any other blood that is donated!

I agree that it's a bit odd, but it's highly unlikely to have CJD in it, which was the original thinking behind the ban, and frankly anything else lurking that's not done them any serious harm in 45 years is probably safe enough.

I received a blood donation ten years ago after a horrific birth so can't donate - but was asked to donate bone marrow after that to help a close relative? I didn't as it turned out, as I wasn't a match - not sure why I can donate bone marrow (which forms blood cells) and not blood, though?

To be fair, mumsnet would be much quieter if people just googled what can easily be googled! But we’d miss all the additional insights people bring.

I still don’t understand why people who had transfusions before 1980 can donate… assuming back then there were even fewer tests, they could have anything swimming around in their blood?

But yet you can be an organ donor if you have had cancer. Doesn't make much sense.

I was given blood in 1988 when i was pregnant with my son, 3 units, I have always wondered, and cant find any answers, but does that mean he cant give blood either, in fact what about all my children who came after?

You also can't donate if you've ever had cancer which must reduce the number of donors massively as 1 in 3 of us will have. (I appreciate the majority of those will be too old to donate by the time they get cancer, but it must still be a significant number.

Seeing the infected blood scandal unfold & the devastation that caused I think the rules are sensible & proportionate.

There is enough safe blood donated. When stocks run low then there is a campaign to increase donations. Blood stocks never run so low that peoples lives are at risk.

@DannSindWirHelden explained it well.

It's because although they do test blood for things like hepatitis etc, the tests aren't 100% and in emergency situations, they don't always get to run all the tests on donated blood that they usually would.

I would think because of the Infected Blood Enquiry, the rules and regs have been severely tightened to prevent anything so shocking happening again. You were given blood to save your life so presumably the decision wasn't that hard for you to make - did you sign a disclaimer in advance? It's all a bit weird, I've had cancer and was told to come off the Donor Register but now I'm told I can go back on because there'll always be 'unaffected bits' they can use!

I think I had a relative who died of CJD. It was treated as a “mystery illness” when he became ill in the early 70s. He had all the CJD symptoms and he worked in a very rural chicken slaughtering plant. It was literally a huge shed where chicken were killed, gutted, plucked, whatever they do, all in the same place. He became ill quite suddenly, deteriorated rapidly. The explanation his parents were given was that his brain was becoming “jelly” because of fluid and this fluid was taking over his brain. This was nearly 50 years ago, he had been transferred to a London hospital where he died after a few years of being ill. ( maybe 2- 2.5 years?)

OP I can’t donate either, had a couple of transfusions and have fibromyalgia. Thanks to everyone who can and does donate blood — I’m very grateful for the several pints of blood that helped me.

As a PP said it's perfectly clearly explained in many places so not sure why you're confused. I also can't due to 4 points received during an operation in 1990 (when I was 14). Them's the breaks 🤷‍♀️

It's blood donated after 1980

I'm also sad that I cannot donate after having my life saved by blood and plasma twice!

Also, my son had a transfusion as a premature baby so he's off the register before he can even think about it!

It's not just vCJD tbh.

There could be any number of unknown nasties lurking in anyone's blood. If it's life or death and you've lost pints of blood then you have to take that chance and take a unit, but from then on your risk of "unknown unknowns" is double that of a random person who's never had a transfusion.

Having a blood transfusion is sometimes lifesaving, but it's never risk free: that's why we do less of it than we used to, (apart from sickle cell patients).

Hmm. I did develop an autoimmune disease after blood transfusion but put that down to the trauma rather than bad blood. Agh! Darent think about it.

I still don’t get that though - so the blood I received in 2017 might have been hanging around since before 1980 - before I was born?

My logic is that surely the blood I received was fine - do blood donors have a screening before they first donate? I’d assume so. So therefore if I received good blood, why can’t I donate post-transfusion?

I know someone who recently died from CJD (not vCJD) and absolutely horrendous so obviously not something to take lightly! But I don’t get it.

Am on the DKMS reg as they will have me at least!

i was told it’s because while the blood is
screened before use they can’t be 100% clear . Got told this after having also 70 units of blood given to me. While it saved my life it makes me worried for the future that someone has given me something.

I can't because they think they may have given me something (nasty) that they don't want back! Great isn't it.

You might be able to give plasma, but I think I'm too old now anyway.

Why the rolly eyes? It is helpful, a 10 second search would have given OP the answer