Re: Apheresis

On Tue, 05 Feb 2008 17:49:41 GMT, Jette <bosslady@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
wrote:

>There's a rare, but known, condition where the body produces too many 
>red cells.  Sufferers are at high risk of problems such as heart 
>attacks, so regular "bleeding" is good for them.

My mother has that -- polycythemia.  (Not to be confused with the
fatal "xenopolycythemia" that showed up in an episode of _Star Trek_.)
She takes medication for it, but she also goes in to be bled from time
to time.  She was annoyed to discover that her blood can't be used for
standard donation, but she can designate it to be used for research
purposes; otherwise, it would be disposed of.