Help More Gay/Bisexual Men Donate Life Saving Blood Thru The Red Cross

Only 3% of the U.S. population gives blood though 62% are eligible to donate. That’s a lot of people missing the opportunity to make a lifesaving impact. And during the summer, donations often get even lower with folks traveling, vacationing and enjoying time off...The American Red Cross needs more donors in August to prevent a blood shortage. As a thank-you for helping, all who come to give this month will be entered to win gas for a year and will also receive a $10 e-gift card to a merchant of choice. Details are available at rcblood.org/fuel. 

How do you find a blood drive near you to schedule an appointment?    

Make an appointment to give blood or platelets by using the Red Cross Blood Donor App, visiting RedCrossBlood.org or calling

1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767). 

Help MORE gay/bisexual men be eligible to donate blood!

The Red Cross is sponsoring a new study and NEEDS PARTICIPANTS.

200 people needed to take part before the Sept 30th deadline.

Compensation included.

Details here: https://advancestudy.org/

The study is called the ADVANCE Study, which stands for Assessing Donor Variability And New Concepts in Eligibility.

Three of the nation’s largest blood centers – Vitalant, OneBlood, and the American Red Cross – are conducting a pilot study funded by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that could lead to a significant change to blood donor eligibility for men who have sex with men.  The study is focused on evaluating alternatives to the blood donor deferral policy known as men who have sex with men (MSM). Currently, the FDA recommends that men who have had sex with another man be deferred from donating blood for three months after the most recent sexual contact with another man.  The purpose of the study is to determine whether a different donor deferral policy can be used at blood centers nationwide while maintaining the safety of the blood supply. For this to be possible, a change would need to be made to the donor history questionnaire, and this study is the first step in assessing the safety of a change. 

The donor history questionnaire consists of a series of questions that all potential blood donors answer before donating. The questions are written to assess risk factors that could indicate possible infection with a transfusion transmissible infection, including HIV.  

The ADVANCE study is a first step in providing data that will help the FDA determine if a donor history questionnaire based on individual risk would be as effective as time-based deferral, in reducing the risk of HIV in the blood supply.  If the scientific evidence supports the use of the different questions it could mean men who have sex with men who present to donate would be assessed based upon their own individual risk for HIV infection and not according to when their last sexual contact with another man occurred. The ADVANCE study is groundbreaking because it’s the first time a study is being conducted that could result in individual risk assessment for men who have sex with men to donate blood.  To gather the necessary data the blood centers will partner with LGBTQ+ Centers in Washington D.C., San Francisco, Orlando, New Orleans/Baton Rouge, Miami, Memphis, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. The study will enroll a total of 2,000 gay and bisexual men (250 – 300 from each area) who meet the study eligibility criteria. 

Aired August 21, 2022: Lisa Foxx interviewed Sean Inoue - Executive Director, Western Los Angeles Chapter, American Red Cross Los Angeles Region...they discussed the importance of folks helping to donate pints of life saving blood. They also discussed the August donation incentives AND the Advance Study that is seeking participants in helping MORE people in the Gay/Bisexual community be eligible to donate blood more often.


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