Types of Donations

You can make the following types of donations at the NIH Blood Bank on the NIH main campus:

• Blood components for transfusion
  • Whole blood
  • Red cells by apheresis
  • AB Plasma by apheresis
  • Convalescent Plasma
• Hemochromatosis donations
• Blood components for laboratory research use

You can make the following types of donations at the NIH Donor Center at Fishers Lane:

• Platelets by apheresis
• Granulocytes by apheresis

Donated blood is never wasted. It is used every day of the year to treat Clinical Center patients who are participating in the medical treatment and research programs of the National Institutes of Health. If your blood is not required for immediate use, it may be frozen and stored. Fractions of blood that cannot be used for transfusion are used for research. Occasionally, the blood you give may not be required for a patient here but may be sent to another hospital, where it can be used to help save a life.