Blood donors warned over possible vCJD carriage

Around 100 people who donated blood to three people who subsequently developed vCJD, have been warned that they may have a greater chance of carrying the agent that causes the disease.

The individuals will be asked not to donate blood, tissue or organs and to inform health professionals so that extra precautions can be taken should they require surgery.

However, health officials have stressed that it is not known whether the source of vCJD in these patients is related to the blood that they received and the measures are being taken as "precautionary steps".

Notification of donors is taking place via letters from the National Blood Service who are working closely with the Health Protection Agency to identify the people involved.

Commenting on the warning the Chief Medical Officer, Sir Liam Donaldson said: "We need to ensure that appropriate action is taken on any new information that becomes available on the risk of transmission of vCJD, to protect the public as much as possible. When a recipient of a blood transfusion goes on to develop vCJD, we have to consider the possibility that the infection could have been passed on through the transfusion.

"Until a reliable blood screening test becomes available, it is sensible to proceed with highly precautionary measures such as this to rule out any possibility of onward transmission of the disease. We are committed to further research to help us understand this disease and diagnose infection at an early stage.

"Following the identification of vCJD, we introduced a number of measure to reduce the possible risk that infection could be transmitted through the blood supply. Since the announcement in December 2003 of the first case of possible transfusion-associated transmission of vCJD, we have further strengthened these preventative measures.The decisions taken so far have been based on the principles of caution and openness".

The letters that people receive will provide a telephone number for a dedicated helpline staffed by senior transfusion experts from the National Blood Service, and will also advise them to contact their GP for more information, advice and support.

The likelihood of a person who may be infected with vCJD going on to develop symptoms of the disease is uncertain and it is possible that an infected person may never develop symptoms.

Dr Angela Robinson from the National Blood Service said: "Blood donors are highly committed to helping other people and we greatly value their contribution. The NHS depends upon their continued commitment in order to be able to save lives.

"This notification exercise will affect in the order of 100 donors. If you have donated blood in the last five years and are not contacted shortly, you can be assured that you are not involved in this new safety measure and need to take no further action."

She added: "For those people who are involved, this information may be difficult to absorb. That is why we have set up the National Blood Service helpline and are working with their doctors and other clinicians, to ensure that they have the information and support they need."

The decision to issue the warning advice was taken following the advice of two expert committees and a detailed risk assessment exercise in the cases.

(SP/GB)