The website for Canadian Blood Services calls blood “the most precious gift” but it is also one of the most anonymous. Very seldom do donors ever find out who their blood products go to. All they know is that the faceless need is always there.
There’s a boy in St. Albert who can put a face to blood donation. Hunter Kuzik celebrated his sixth birthday on the weekend but that milestone was prompted by another one earlier last week. He received his one-hundredth blood transfusion on Wednesday. His one hundred and first will come in two weeks.
Diagnosed with Diamond-Blackfan Anemia (DBA), he needs to visit the Stollery Children’s Hospital every three weeks to get a fresh transfusion of red blood cells. The disorder of his bone marrow means that he just doesn’t produce enough red blood cells of his own. Since it is unlikely he will find a match for a bone marrow transplant, he will continue to visit the Stollery every three weeks for the rest of his life.
For that reason, his mother is calling for people to make donating blood a regular part of their lives. Carrie Kuzik stressed that while there may be a misconception that recipients generally only need a minimal number of units of blood, there are many others like her son who rely on regular transfusions for survival.
“I know there are a lot of people that don't donate. I think a lot of people don't really understand the high need for blood especially when they do not know anyone personally that needs it on a regular basis,” she began. “As a parent, I am sure a lot of people would understand that it is hard to accept that I have to rely on the help of strangers to donate blood on a regular basis to keep my son alive but that's my reality.”
To demonstrate how many strangers Hunter will have to rely on, Kuzik said that if her son has already received 100 units then when he turns 60 he would reach 1,000 units. She said that’s not a number of transfusions to her — each of those units is a person.
She called donors the lifeblood of altruism, in both the metaphorical and literal sense.
“We are counting on a lot of people to donate blood to ensure that Hunter has blood available for him when it needs it,” Kuzik said. “Donating blood is a pretty selfless act. The person donating only gets cookies and juice out of the deal. The truth is, they save lives.”
People who pass the screening process can choose to donate a variety of blood products including whole blood or specific components of red blood cells, plasma, or platelets only. Donors can also choose to be tested for stem cell and bone marrow compatibility as part of a transplant network called OneMatch.
For more information on the process or the variety of blood products that can be donated, please call 1-888-2-DONATE (236-6283) or visit www.bloodservices.ca. The Edmonton site is located just south of the University of Alberta Hospital at 8249 - 114 St. The next travelling whole blood clinic in St. Albert will be held from 3 to 8 p.m. April 19 in the parish hall at the St. Albert Catholic Church located at 7 St. Vital Avenue. Appointments are preferred.
