As the search continues for prospective blood donors for a Broward County toddler with an extremely rare blood type in need of blood transfusions, there is some good news.
OneBlood announced Wednesday, that they have found a fourth donor in the United Kingdom.
The news arrives a month after OneBlood found three donors that matched her unique blood type.
“It’s been discovered that she is lacking a very common antigen that most people have, and because she’s lacking it, she needs blood from people who are also lacking it, and that’s the Indian B antigen,” said Susan Forbes with OneBlood.
It’s one of the rarest blood types in the world, and it means Zainab’s body will reject any blood that contains the Indian B antigen.
Late last year, the child’s mother, Mariam Mehmood, discovered a large mass in her daughter’s abdomen and rushed the 2-year-old to the hospital. That’s when the family received devastating news: the toddler had an aggressive form of cancer called neuroblastoma.
She needs chemotherapy for treatment, along with blood transfusions.
Forbes said Zainab needs seven to ten donors to meet her long-term needs during treatment.
The only people who are likely to be a match for Zainab are people of Pakistani, Indian or Iranian descent, Forbes said. Of these populations, less than 4 percent of the people are actually missing the Indian B antigen.
OneBlood said it’s working closely with other blood centers across the country as well as the American Rare Donor Program, which helps search the globe for donors with rare blood types.
According OneBlood, the following conditions must be met for anyone to be a possible match for Zainab:
- Must be exclusively Pakistani, Indian or Iranian descent – meaning the donor’s birth parents are both 100 percent Pakistani, Indian or Iranian.
- Must be blood type “O” or “A.”
- Donors must reach out to OneBlood in advance to ensure the additional compatibility testing is performed.
For more information on how to become a potential donor for Zainab, click here.
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