In this edition:

• Give Blood, Get Gear!
• A New Mother Saved By Blood
• Donate Blood in San Jose!
• What the Heck is a Platelet Anyway?
• World Blood Donor Day - June 14th
• Organ Donation - The Dot Isn't Enough

 

Give Blood, Get Gear!

From North Face to Adidas, get all your favorite sports apparel using a $15 gift coupon, courtesy of Sports Basement! How? Just donate blood during the month of April and we’ll give you a $15 Sports Basement gift coupon! The coupon is redeemable at Sports Basement stores or online ( www.sportsbasement.com ).

So spring into action by giving blood and getting gear!

To make an appointment, please call us at 1-888-393-GIVE or visit www.bloodcenters.org

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A New Mother Saved By Blood

Due to complications during childbirth brought on by a condition called preeclampsia, Lauren Larsen spent five weeks in the intensive care unit. During her hospitalization, Lauren needed 250 pints of blood and blood components. Today, Lauren, husband Jeff and daughter Clare are all doing fine, and are thankful to the blood donors who provided her with the gift of life.

“No one really knows when a medical emergency will hit. I certainly didn’t,” said Lauren, now a National Blood Donation Advocate. “But...Blood Centers of the Pacific and its donors were there for me.”

A year after she was released from the hospital, Lauren ran the New York Marathon and raised $50,000 and 500 blood donations.

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Donate Blood in San Jose!

Starting Monday, April 9th, donors in the South Bay will have a new blood donation location in San Jose! Open every second and fourth Monday from 2:00pm to 7:00pm, donors will be able to give the gift of life closer to home at: Willow Glen United Methodist Church, 1420 Newport Avenue (Wesley Room). To make your lifesaving appointment, please call 1-888-393-GIVE or click here.

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What the Heck is a Platelet Anyway?

As a blood donor, you may have heard or read about a special component of blood called "platelets." Did you know that unlike red blood cells, which last 42 days, precious platelets last just five? Platelets are the component of blood, which enables clotting and are most often used to treat cancer patients, though they're also needed in complex surgeries, such as organ transplants and to treat those with bleeding disorders. And recently, BCP has seen a 20 percent increase in the need for platelets from area hospitals.

There's a special way to donate platelets called Apheresis (ay-fur-ree-sis), which enables us to just draw your platelets, not your "whole blood." And the best part is, you can donate platelets while you're relaxing in our comfy "e-Chairs," watching a DVD or surfing the Internet!

To learn more about apheresis, click here or call 1-800-707-8483.

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Celebrating the Gift of Blood - World Blood Donor Day, June 14, 2007

Not only is June 14th, the birthday of Karl Landsteiner, the Nobel prize winner who discovered the ABO blood group system, but it’s also World Blood Donor Day - a day to celebrate and thank blood donors for their lifesaving gift. World Blood Donor Day has become a major focus for action toward achieving global blood safety and availablity.

This year’s theme, “Safe Blood for Safe Motherhood,” highlights how blood donors can play a vital role in saving the lives of mothers and their newborns.

Canada was selected to host this year’s WBDD. For more information on World Blood Donor Day, please visit www.wbdd.org.

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Organ Donation - The Dot Isn’t Enough

Did you know that simply having the pink “donor” dot on your driver’s license does not ensure your organs will be donated after your death? If your next-of-kin does not agree that your organs should be donated, they won’t be. That is, until the new California statewide registry was launched. Now, you simply need to visit www.donatelifecalifornia.org and sign up to ensure your wishes to be an organ donor are fulfilled after your death. And what better time to become an organ donor than the month of April, which is National Donate Life Month.

Currently, almost 10,000 men, women and children in Northern and Central California are waiting for organ transplants to save their lives. Each day, 18 people – one every 90 minutes – die in the United States because of a shortage of organ donors. In 2006, more than 6,000 individuals died on the U.S. organ-transplant waiting list because the organs they needed were not donated in time.

Remember, one person can potentially save up to eight lives as an organ donor, and improve more than 50 others through eye and tissue donation.

For more information, please visit the California Transplant Donor Network at www.ctdn.org.

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Donate Blood. Save Lives. | 1-888-393-GIVE | www.bloodcenters.org

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