Platelets are the blood component serving as the body’s “bandages.” They allow blood to clot, helping wounds to heal.
Cancer patients, especially leukemia, lymphoma, bone marrow transplant, or stem cell transplant patients, people who have sustained trauma, babies in the NICU, and many other critically ill patients are at serious risk because their blood does not clot properly. They need transfusions of healthy platelets to control their bleeding.
Platelets have an even shorter shelf life than whole blood—just five days. Volunteer donors ensure that there will always be a sufficient supply of platelets for patients in need.
Platelets benefiting both Brigham and Women’s and Dana-Farber patients are collected at the Kraft Family Blood Donor Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, located on the first floor of the Jimmy Fund Building at 35 Binney Street in Boston.
