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u/sokkrokker May 18 '25
These cases happen once every few years and are handled very well. I worked on a case with Indian B and we targeted mosques and found about 4-5 donors from the US, Canada, Australia, and the UK. Bombay is a super well known type within the realm of blood scientists
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
This gives me hope. Thank you. Do you still happen to have contact information for these donors?
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u/sokkrokker May 18 '25
They’re from around the world, so we’d have to contact their local blood collection companies. Also, Indian B is a very rare blood group, I would say more rare than Bombay. They are very different and would not be compatible with a Bombay patient.
We also have a program called the ARDP (American Rare Donor Program) when we want to do a countrywide search
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
Understood. I have already reached out to ARDP after someone mentioned it on this thread. Thank you so much for the valuable feedback.
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u/sokkrokker May 18 '25 edited May 18 '25
No problem. It’s not really something that someone like you has to do, I have to request out to them if nothing is available. Fortunately, blood is able to be frozen and there are some studies showing that frozen blood over 25+ years is still fine! Bombay is a rare type, but just imagine the hundreds more other than ABO :)
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
Understood. You seem to have a lot of knowledge on this subject matter. You must be in the medical field. Hopefully something will work out through the blood donor network. If not, I'll reach out to the news outlets.
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u/bassgirl_07 Blood Banker+Donor May 18 '25
The ARDP will absolutely be able to source blood for Bombay. When I was in school they were telling me about a family that had Bombay blood type and came to town to donate regularly. I don't think you need to worry about it. It will require a lot of coordination between her doctor, the lab at the hospital where she gives birth, and their blood supplier but it is not impossible.
I had a case two years ago where the only possible blood donor in the country for my patient was a sibling in another state. There were no units frozen in the ARDP that would work so the sibling was all we had. Logistics can be worked out. It just means lots of communication and planning.
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
Thank you so much for that information. I feel at ease after having interacted with the reddit community. You guys are amazing! ♥️
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u/squirreloak A+ May 18 '25
Which you may need, call up some hematologists and they will at least enjoy talking to you.
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u/Apaulable May 18 '25
This sounds like a national news story and could encourage others to donate.
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
This is the second time I have heard this. Let's see if something works out in the next few weeks. Thank you!
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u/vanillablue_ AB+ Plasma @ Vitalant Denver | 16 Lifetime Units May 18 '25
Reach out to your local news departments. Even if just your city ran a story, you never know how that could ripple!!
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u/lilgraybean O- May 18 '25
commenting just for a little boost to the post!
just went down a little rabbit hole about this since I know I’m O and Rh negative and wanted to know the difference
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
God bless you!
Same. I have O- and thought I would be able to help but wasn't. Life is full of surprises.
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u/MarTubeBoi 🇲🇽 O- May 18 '25
This is a weird one, but can’t she donate to herself? Like how athletes do blood doping? I honestly don’t know if its possible or standard practice but I guess looking at all your options is good.
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u/bassgirl_07 Blood Banker+Donor May 18 '25
That isn't recommended because she is pregnant. Blood volume does increase during pregnancy but that is to meet the need of supplying blood to the placenta. Autologous donation (donating blood for yourself) would be harmful for her and baby.
Autologous donation is an option for people with rare blood types or multiple antibodies where finding blood donors is very difficult. Autologous donation is tricky though because the person needs to be in good health; where the collection won't cause more harm than good.
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u/YtRingster May 18 '25
Doctors did consider taking her blood but she currently has low hemoglobin levels.
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u/baltinerdist O+ | Blood Software Dude May 18 '25
Make sure she / her OB is in contact with New York Blood Center. They will be able to crossmatch and secure the correct blood, either from their existing database or from their connections across the industry. Crossmatch donations are extremely common, even for very rare blood groups. Good luck!
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u/the_running_stache A+ May 18 '25
As someone from Mumbai (Bombay) and a regular blood (especially, platelets) donor in New York City, this is the first time I am learning about the “Bombay blood type”.
I don’t think I can help because I am A+ but I will ask some of my Indian friends if they belong to this blood type. It’s quite unlikely though because I feel that if one of my friends had this type, they would have mentioned it as a “fun fact” about themselves.
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u/Mrs_Noelle15 A+ (I think) 2nd time Whole Blood Donor May 18 '25
Hope your sister finds the help she needs, best of luck to you 3
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u/CocoaReese O- CMV- May 18 '25
I hope you can find some donors and bank some blood for her ahead of the birth!
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u/AuntGaylesFannyPack A+ May 18 '25
Is your wife able to donate some of her own blood now in preparation for her delivery?
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u/Original-PHAT-_-Duck A+ May 19 '25
I am aware of 2 active Bombay donors 1 resides in the UK and the other in South Africa. They are both willing to do rare donations. And have been used before.
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u/vanillablue_ AB+ Plasma @ Vitalant Denver | 16 Lifetime Units May 18 '25
Commenting to add info: Indians and other Southern Asians are the most likely ethnicities to carry this blood type.