JW Jacobs et al. Transfusion 2026;1–9. Open Access! Directed donations for unvaccinated blood: A departure from evidence-based medicine associated with clinical harm, resource waste, and oversight gaps in a two-year single-center series

Background: “Vaccination status cannot be verified through standard blood supply channels, patients seeking “unvaccinated” blood have increasingly resorted to directed donation from known donors…directed donations demonstrate higher rates of infectious disease marker reactivity compared with repeat community donors, particularly among first-time parental donors.^25, 26“

Methods: This was retrospective review of directed donations (n=15 including 9 pediatric patients) received at Vanderbilt University Medical Center between January1, 2024 and December 31, 2025

Key findings:

• Two patients clinically deteriorated in the setting of refusal of standard components
• Two additional patients had surgical delay/cancellation with rescheduling associated with directed component availability

Conclusion by authors: “Directed donation pursued for “unvaccinated” blood concerns occurred across pediatric and adult settings in both elective and urgent clinical scenarios. These requests were associated with clinical deterioration, care delays, and resource inefficiencies when standard inventory products were refused.”

My take: Many families do not understand that directed donation is less safe than using the blood bank.

Fox News report on this article by M Rudy (4/13/26): More patients demand ‘unvaccinated’ blood, doctors warn of growing health risks