Liu Minxia, Deng Lisite

    mllmx@msn.com

    NEARLY 200 people with Rh-negative blood met yesterday at Shenzhen’s blood center for the establishment of an organization, which has volunteered to help others who have the same blood type.

    For Han Chinese, only three people in 1,000 have Rh-negative blood, nicknamed “panda blood” for its rarity.

    The Shenzhen Panda Rare Blood Type Volunteer Promotion Association was founded by five residents who have Rh-negative blood. They hope similar organizations will spread to other parts of China, according to Zhang Li, one of its founders.

    The Rh factor is part of a blood type. In addition to being A, B, AB and O, blood can be Rh positive or Rh negative. About 0.3 percent of Han Chinese and 15 percent of Caucasians are Rh negative, and in Shenzhen about 6,000 residents are Rh negative, according to Zhang.

    Zhang, a teacher at a middle school in Nanshan District, said the association will become especially significant when an international sports competition is held in Shenzhen as Rh-negative blood is needed.

    “Please assure your foreign readers that there is no worry about the blood supply in Shenzhen. We have a large team of volunteers to ensure the supply,” said Zhang.

    Zhang was found to be blood type O and Rh negative in the 1990s when she first donated her blood. Zhang witnessed the transfusion of her blood to two victims of traffic accidents who were also Rh negative.

    “When it (the blood) was needed, it was urgent,” Zhang said. “It’s been much better now in Shenzhen where the most advanced blood storage technologies are being used. Still, from time to time, I hear news from other parts of China that people are either dying from the short supply of Rh-negative blood, or being swindled out of money when buying the blood in urgent need.”

    Other founders, from different walks of life, ranging from accountants to public servants, share Zhang’s vision. “We hope some day every Chinese city has such an organization, which will ensure the supply of Rh-negative blood for those in need,” said Li Xiaohong, another founder.

    More than 2,000 Shenzhen residents have donated blood at the city’s blood center since the center began to take blood donations, Lan Yuxiao, a director with the blood center, told reporters yesterday. Slightly more than 500 people who are Rh negative donated blood last year and about 500 to 700 people who are Rh negative in the city are in touch with the blood center, according to Lan.

    “It is important to have Rh-negative blood in good supply,” said Lan. “It takes seven to eight hours if we summon someone to donate when a patient needs it urgently.”

    Last year a Shenzhen woman who had O type Rh-negative blood suffered a hemorrhage while giving birth, and the blood supply was not enough for her. Twenty-four residents across the city donated blood for her and six of them were found to be O type Rh negative.