Hood News Service

SALISBURY — Hood Theological Seminary will host a blood drive on Saturday from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. The Community Bloodmobile of the Community Blood Center of the Carolinas (CBCC) will be located in the parking lot next to the Security Office on the Seminary campus at 1810 Lutheran Synod Drive in Salisbury.

While donors of all ethnicities are needed, “there is a critical need for blood donations from the African American community,” said Dr. Dora Mbuwayesango, Hood Seminary professor and dean of students who organized the blood drive. “African Americans are disproportionately impacted by certain diseases, such as sickle cell anemia, which are treated through blood transfusions.”

According to the CBCC, sickle cell anemia affects more than 80,000 people in the United States, 98 percent of whom are African-American. Many need periodic blood transfusions to help treat the effects of the disease. Certain blood types are unique to specific racial and ethnic groups, so it is crucial that the donor diversity match the patient diversity. For example, U-negative and Duffy-negative blood types are unique to the African-American community. Therefore, sickle cell patients with these blood types must rely on donors with matching blood types in the African American community.

Blood from donors of the same ethnic background decreases the risk of complications for patients and is less likely to be rejected by the patient after a transfusion. Having more African American blood donors increases the likelihood that sickle cell patients here in our community will find the match they need. Also, increasing African American donations is vital because blood types O and B, the blood types of about 70 percent of African-Americans, are the blood types most in demand.

To schedule a time to give life-saving blood, contact Dr. Mbuwayesango at dmbuwayesango@hoodseminary.edu or 704-636-6077 or come to the campus at 1810 Lutheran Synod Drive in Salisbury.