Testing Update

PRISM Hepatitis B anitbody (HBcAB) testing update

Update for donors waiting for the new PRISM test (new screening test for antibody to Hepatitis B core protein (HBcAb):

Good news!  For those of you who have been deferred until a new screening test for antibody to hepatitis B core protein became available, Stanford Blood Center has recently implemented the PRISM screening test and is ready to begin retesting.

Before coming in to donate at Stanford Blood Center, please read the following:

If you have donated blood at another blood center since donating at Stanford Blood Center, and you were told that you reacted on their screening test for hepatitis B core antibody, please call Arlene Layon, Clinical Specialist, at 650-723-2597.

If you have donated apheresis (plateletpheresis) in the past, we are requiring that your first blood donation be a whole blood donation at this time. If, after this initial donation you would like to be reinstated as a donor in our apheresis program (now called the "Automated Blood Collection" program, or ABC), please contact Arlene Layon, Clinical Specialist, at 650-723-2597.

PRISM Hepatitis C antibody testing (HCV)

Update for donors who have tested false positive (i.e., confirmed negative) on Stanford Blood Center's screening test for Hepatitis C antibody:

Currently, we are still waiting to implement a more sensitive version of our screening test for the hepatitis C antibody (HCV). This new test is part of our the PRISM test system. Unfortunately, the test is still awaiting FDA approval.  we must first receive FDA approval before we can begin to test our donors. While we do not have a firm date for implementing the new test, we expect that it will become available sometime next year.

When the PRISM HCV test does become available, we will post information on this Web site, and we will initiate reinstatement testing for donors who previously have tested "confirmed negative" on a HCV screening test in the past.

HIV-1,2 antibody testing update

Update for donors who have tested false positive (i.e. confirmed negative) on Stanford Blood Center’s screening test for HIV-1,2 antibody:

We are also still waiting for a new, streamlined FDA reinstatement testing procedure that we can use for blood donor reinstatement.  Unfortunately, the FDA will not recognize a donor's test results from his or her personal doctor as proof for blood donor eligibility reinstatement.  Therefore, we (blood banks) are required to wait for the FDA's reinstatement procedure.

The good news is that about two years ago, a draft procedure was routed from the FDA to blood centers regarding the new proposed reinstatement algorithm. The FDA is reviewing comments and is reportedly drafting a FINAL version of this reinstatement procedure. We will post information on this Web site when the reinstatement procedure is available.