David thought his blood was no good. He was surprised it can treat his granddaughter

More than 73,000 bags of blood are thrown out every year instead of being used to help save lives because people with a common iron disorder don’t realise they can be blood donors.

Tens of thousands of people with haemochromatosis pay hundreds of dollars every time they have their blood drawn as part of their medical treatment. That blood is then discarded instead being donated to Lifeblood, where it would be used to help treat at least three critically ill or injured patients.

Medicare data shows that between July 2022 and June 2023, 73,531 bags of at least 450 millilitres of blood were collected from haemochromatosis patients by GP clinics or pathology services nationally, including almost 20,000 bags in NSW and over 22,000 bags in Victoria.

David Worgen, 69, paid $250 every time he had his blood drawn and discarded by his GP to treat his haemochromatosis.

“I thought my blood was no good,” Worgen said.

Then, in August 2023, his 10-year-old granddaughter, Sienna, was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia and became dependent on blood donations. Sienna’s father – David’s son Scott – realised David could donate.

“When dad told me he couldn’t donate because he had too much iron in his blood, and he had to get rid of it, I thought it was crazy that this blood is wasted,” Scott Worgen said.

“They’re tossing it away at the same time that Lifeblood is [appealing] for more blood donations.”

For Worgen senior, the decision was easy.

“You go to a blood bank, you get free food,” Worgen said with a laugh. “And it saves lives. You won’t get all that at your GP.”

Haemochromatosis – characterised by too much iron in the body – is the most common genetic disorder in Australia. It affects one in 180 to 200 people, and is typically treated by regular blood-letting, usually every 12 weeks.

Australian Red Cross Lifeblood researcher Dr Peter Bentley said that, unlike many other chronic health problems, haemochromatosis had a positive spin-off for others.

“We know that not everyone will be eligible to donate, or it may not be convenient if people don’t live close to a donor centre, but we believe that even if some of those 73,000 bags of discarded blood were donated at a Lifeblood centre, it would make a significant difference to the nation’s blood supplies and the lives of patients across Australia at a time of record high demand,” Bentley said.

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners NSW and ACT chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman said the misconception that haemochromatosis patients were ineligible to donate blood was “not sensible”.

“It’s really about educating our patients and doctors that there is this option, other than going to pathology, and then their blood gets repurposed for good use instead of being discarded,” Hoffman said.

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