Dr Michelle Dickinson: nanotechnologist reveals whether donating blood can reduce your risk of cancer

The need for blood is constant, and every day lives are saved thanks to the generosity of blood donors. With a law change last year, even more people in New Zealand can now become blood donors. The removal of the ban on those who lived in the UK, France, or Ireland between 1980 and 1996 means thousands more Kiwis are now eligible to donate. This restriction was originally introduced due to concerns about Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD), also known as Mad Cow Disease.  New research published in the journal Blood suggests that in addition to helping save lives, being a regular blood donor might also reduce your risk of developing certain blood cancers.  The study compared the blood of 200 healthy male blood donors in their 60s. One group had donated blood three times a year for 40 years, while the other had donated only around five times in total. While both groups showed a similar number of natural genetic mutations that accumulate with age, the type of mutation in stem cells differed:  50 percent of the frequent donors had a specific genetic variation. 30 percent of the irregular donors showed the same mutation. Interestingly, this genetic change is not linked to a higher risk of blood cancers like leukaemia. In fact, lab tests showed that blood stem cells from frequent donors were good at producing healthy red blood cells.  As we age, stem cells in our bone marrow naturally accumulate mutations, resulting in groups of blood cells with slightly different genetic makeups. Sometimes, these mutations can increase the risk of blood cancers like leukaemia.  One gene of particular interest in this study is called DNMT3A, which is known to be mutated in people who develop leukaemia. However, researchers found that the mutations in DNMT3A observed in frequent donors occurred in areas not associated with a pre-leukemic risk.  When you donate blood, your body responds by producing new blood cells to replace what was lost. This process places mild stress on the body, which appears to promote the renewal of healthy blood stem cells and select for mutations that favour growth rather than disease.  These findings add another potential benefit to regular blood donation. While the research does not prove that donating blood directly reduces the risk of blood cancer, it suggests that the process of blood renewal may positively influence the genetic makeup of stem cells.  With the recent eligibility changes in New Zealand, there has never been a better time to become a donor. By giving blood, you not only help those in need but may also support your own long-term health.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.