VANCOUVER -- Hospitals are always in need of donated blood, and for cancer patients, car accident victims, and those undergoing open heart surgery or organ transplants, there's always a scarcity of platelets - the key blood component that controls bleeding. Now a Vancouver scientist has developed a device which will help extend the shelf life of these life-saving cells.
Constable Matt Black says, "it's soo easy to do, so real that when it did hit my family, that this is a way I can help. Black donates platelets whenever he can. He started giving 11 years ago, after his twin brother's battle with t-cell lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system.
CONSTABLE MATTHEW BLACK SAYS: "I GET ONE NEEDLE INTO MY ARM, IT TAKES BLOOD OUT, SEPARATES IT, AND ONCE THE PLATELETS ARE REMOVED, IT PUMPS IT BACK IN."
STUART SAYS: "THE CHEMOTHERAPY ATTACKS THE BLOOD AND THE PLATELETS REPLACED THE ONES I WAS LOSING...EVERYTIME I GOT THEM FELT GREAT AFTERWARDS."
Keeping up with demand is always a problem with platelets, because unlike red blood cells and plasma which can be stored for weeks or months, these cells have a shelf life of just five days.
DR. JERRY GROWE, MEDICAL DIRECTOR, CANADIAN BLOOD SERVICES, BC AND YUKON, SAYS: "THERE'S A COUPLE OF REASONS, ONE OF THEM IS THE PLATELET REMAINING ACTIVE AND ALIVE AND THE OTHER IS THE OTHER IS STERILITY OF THE PRODUCT. THAT BECAUSE WE STORE IT A ROOM TEMPERATURE WE'RE CONCERNED IT COULD POTENTIALLY GET INFECTED."
But platelets from some donors last longer than others. Now, for the first time, there's a way to rapidly test the quality of these blood-clotting cells, using a light scattering device developed by a UBC chemist.
ELISABETH MAUSER, INVENTOR OF DEVICE, SAYS: "THE LIGHT THAT IS BOUNCING OFF THE PLATELETS CONTAINS THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE SHAPE OF THE PLATLETS, THEIR RESPONSE TO TEMPERATURE, SO IT CONTAINS INFORMATION ABOUT THE QUALITY OF THE PLATELETS."
Using this device and other processes, Mauser believes the shelf-life of platelets can be extended for up to 2 weeks, increasing supply of these life-saving cells in Canada, alone, by up to 20%, helping more people like Stuart.
Stuart says, "you can see them out the bag of platelets up and then you feel it minutes later. It was fantastic. Again, to all those people who donated and who donate, thank you very much."
The device is being patented by the Canadian Blood Services, which expects to take the machine to market in five years. A donor before his cancer, Stuart, continues give blood, but only for research. If you'd like to donate, you can call 1-888-2-DONATE. Each donation, by the way, can help save or improve the lives of up to 3 people.
