Canadian Blood Services needs 150,000 donations by July 1

Canadian Blood Services (CBS) is calling for 150,000 donations by July 1, which is needed to compensate for a low inventory and a shift in regular donors’ schedules during the summer.

“What happens is people get busy outside — they want to be outside, they have the nice weather — so they just forget their regular routine. That’s why we have a call out to Canadians to come help us,” CBS associate director Judy Jones said.

READ MORE: 5 things to know about donating blood 

Jones stated that it’s important to have a strong blood supply because it’s not just emergency situations that call for the need for blood. Donated blood is used in ongoing treatment for other diseases as well.

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“Most people aren’t aware that actually cancer patients need blood every time they come in for treatments,” Jones said.

“If somebody has leukemia, they need eight donors a week to come in to donate units, to help support them each week they have their cancer treatments.”

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According to the Canadian Blood Services website, the greatest need right now is for type-O blood, but with the need for 16,000 donations a week, all donors are encouraged to book an appointment.

READ MORE: ‘Summer is a challenging time for blood collection’: Canadian Blood Services 

Jones encourages all Canadians to go to blood.ca for more information on how and where to donate or to download the GiveBlood app for Apple or Android to book an appointment.