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A doctor is raising awareness for ovarian cancer symptoms after hers were mistaken for a UTI

Jade Biggs 

Normal blood testing to resume after NHS supplies bolstered by US stocks

Non-urgent patients in England and Wales should be able to get blood tests when required following reinforcements of much-needed tube supplies, NHS England has said.

A shortage of the tubes from US supplier Becton Dickinson (BD) had forced the NHS in these nations to suspend all non-urgent blood testing last month.

From August 26, only high-priority patients, including those with suspected sepsis or conditions with a risk of death or disability, or those which were “extremely overdue” have been able to get blood tests.

This meant hospitals had to cut blood testing by one quarter.

But a trio of NHS England directors announced in a letter to GPs and trusts that imports of nine million tubes from BD’s US stocks mean that normal testing is likely to be resumed from October 8.

© Simon Dawson NHS England directors announced normal testing is likely to be resumed from October 8 (PA)

The letter from NHS England national medical director Professor Stephen Powis, interim chief operating officer Mark Cubbon and medical director for primary care Dr Nikita Kanani warned that the supply issue is “not yet completely resolved”.

The letter said: “Becton Dickinson has now completed improvements to its manufacturing facility in the UK and expects its production capacity to recover through September.

“These developments, alongside the efforts of NHS staff to manage use, mean that the supply situation is no longer as constrained… however, the issue is not yet completely resolved.”

NHS England added that primary and community care services, which include GP surgeries, can resume normal testing from Friday, and that A&E departments, community hospitals and mental health trusts must maintain lower levels of testing until October 8.

The tubes from US stocks have been approved for use in the UK by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). 

Referene: By Laura Parnaby, PA 

What's the rarest blood type?

In general, the rarest blood type is AB negative and the most common is O positive. Here's a breakdown of the most rare and common blood types by ethnicity, according to the American Red Cross.

O positive:

• African-American: 47% - sian: 39% - Caucasian: 37% - Latino-American: 53%

O negative:

• African-American: 4% - Asian: 1% - Caucasian: 8% - Latino-American: 4%

A positive:

• African-American: 24% - Asian: 27% - Caucasian: 33% - Latino-American: 29%

A negative:

• African-American: 2% - Asian: 0.5% - Caucasian: 7% - Latino-American: 2% 

B positive:

• African-American: 18% - Asian: 25% - Caucasian: 9% - Latino-American: 9%

B negative:

• African-American: 1% - Asian: 0.4% - Caucasian: 2% - Latino-American: 1%

AB positive: 

• African-American: 4% - Asian: 7% - Caucasian: 3% - Latino-American: 2% - AB negative: - African-American: 0.3% - Asian: 0.1% - Caucasian: 1% - Latino-American: 0.2% 

AB negative:

• African-American: 0.3% - Asian: 0.1% - Caucasian: 1% - Latino-American: 0.2%

© Provided by Live Science null

How is blood type determined?

A person's blood type is based on whether or not they have certain molecules or proteins — called antigens — on the surface of their red blood cells, according to the National Institutes of Health. Two of the main antigens used for blood typing are known as "A antigen" and "B antigen." People with type A blood only have A antigens on their red blood cells and those with type B blood have only B antigens. Individuals with type AB blood have both; people with type O blood have neither.

Another protein, the "Rh factor" — also known as the "Rhesus" system — is also present or absent on red blood cells. A person's blood type is designated as "positive" if they have the Rh protein on their red blood cells, and "negative" if they don't have this protein.

Is blood type genetic?

Yes, a person's blood type is genetic, inherited from his or her parents, according to the Red Cross.

Blood type and transfusions

Blood typing is particularly important for blood transfusions, because certain antigens on blood cells can trigger a person's immune system to attack the donated blood.

People who are Rh-negative can only receive Rh-negative blood, but people who are Rh- positive can receive either Rh-positive or Rh-negative blood, the Red Cross says.

What's more, type A blood can be used for transfusions for patients with type A or type AB blood; type B blood can be used for patients with type B or type AB blood; and type AB blood can be used for patients with type AB blood. Type O blood can be used for patients with type A, type B, type AB and type O blood.

What blood type is the "universal donor"?

 People with type O blood are called "universal donors" because this type can be used for patients with any blood type. 

Type O blood is often in short supply in hospitals, due to demand for this universal donor type, according to the Red Cross. In particular, type O-negative blood is in high demand because it's the one most often used for emergencies, when there may not be time to determine a patient's blood type.

What are "rare" blood types?

Although ABO and Rh groups are the most important blood groups for transfusions, there are hundreds of other antigens that have been found on the surface of people's red blood cells. A person's blood type is rare if their blood does not have an antigen that most people have, or if their blood does have an antigen that most people lack, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Specifically, rare blood types are those that are found in 1 in 1,000 people or fewer.

One of the rarest blood types in the world is known as "Rh-null;" fewer than  50 people in the world have been found to have this blood type, earning it the name "golden blood," the Cleveland Clinic says.

Can blood types change?

A person's blood type does not usually change, meaning it stays the same throughout life. But in some rare cases, blood type has been known to change, including in cases of bone marrow transplants and in people who developed certain types of cancers or infections, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

Blood type and pregnancy

Blood type can be an issue in pregnancy if the mother is Rh negative and the fetus is Rh positive. (The fetus can inherit the Rh factor from either the mother or the father.) That's because, in this situation, the mother's immune system can react to the fetus' "positive" blood. For this reason, pregnant women have their blood tested to determine blood type. Those with Rh-negative blood can be treated with a drug called Rh immunoglobulin to prevent a damaging immune reaction if their fetus has a positive blood type, according to the Cleveland Clinic. 

How to find out your blood type

If you don't know your blood type you can ask your health care provider if they have a record of it. If they don't, you may be able to request blood typing the next time you get your blood drawn, according to CNN. You can also find out your blood type if you donate blood, according to the Cleveland Clinic. There are also at-home blood tests that can tell you your blood type. 

Reference Live Science: Rachael Rettner 

Oxygen therapy may slow Alzheimer’s, study finds 

Alzheimers disease could be slowed down or even reversed using oxygen therapy, according to a new study.

Researchers say the therapy boosts the functioning of the human brains, and has been shown in animals to fight the build-up of brain plaque that is associated with the disease.

The team at Tel Aviv University monitored six people over the age of 60 who have experienced signs of cognitive decline.

After 60 sessions of hyperbaric oxygen therapy over the course of 90 days, they reported seeing blood flow to the brain improving by an average of 20 per cent. Memory test results showed an average improvement of 16.5 per cent, the team said.

By placing the patients in pressurised chambers, scientists believe more oxygen can dissolve into the tissues and mimics a state of hypoxia, which is known to have regenerating effects.

In a separate trial looking at 15 genetically-modified mice that mimicked degeneration caused by Alzheimer’s, researchers reported that the oxygen therapy prevented amyloid plaques forming on the brain, as well as the removal of some existing amyloid plaque deposits.

Amyloids are thought to be connected with severe degenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s.

© Getty Images/iStockphoto: Alzheimer’s disease could be slowed down or even reversed using oxygen therapy, according to a new study

Prof Uri Ashery, lead author of the study, told The Times of Israel: “I don’t think this can ‘cure’ Alzheimer’s in humans, but it may be able to significantly slow its progression and severity.

“Further studies are needed, but people could possibly start benefiting from this in just a few years.”

The study, published in the journal Aging, concluded that hyperbaric oxygen therapy, of HBOT, offers “multi-faceted neuroprotective effects” on Alzheimer’s disease and also improves brain function and cognition in humans.

It called on the therapy to be considered “as a therapeutic approach to slow the progression or even improve the pathophysiology responsible for this disease”.

The therapy has not been tested on patients with Alzheimer’s disease and would require larger trials. Also, few hospitals are able to offer HBOT.

Tom Dening, professor of Dementia Research at Nottingham University, told the Daily Telegraph: “Presumably to be useful, the treatment would have to be continued indefinitely, so any patients would have to be very highly motivated and have good transport links to the treatment facility.

“If we consider that the number of people with dementia in the UK is approaching one million, it is hard to see how hyperbaric oxygen could ever be available on this scale.

“In short, it’s an interesting idea but a long way off meeting the usual criteria to become a standard treatment.”

Another Israeli expert in Alzheimer’s, Dr Deborah Toiber from Ben Gurion University of the Negev, said she was skeptical that reducing plaque on the brain is vital in the fight against Alzheimer’s.

She told The Times of Israel: “I think plaques are a dead end [for research]” and said that there was inadequate evidence that eliminating or reducing plaques would significantly prevent or decrease the severity of the onset of Alzheimer’s.

Reference: Independent: Leonie Chao-Fong