How your donation could help save thousands
You already know donating blood can save up to three lives. But did you know you’re contributing to Australian research too?
World-leading research guides everything we do at Lifeblood, from growing our community of donors, to making our life-saving products among the safest in the world. Sometimes our research involves asking for your thoughts and feedback, other times it might involve studying your blood.
Rest assured, when you donate, your blood will always go to someone in need. In many cases, the samples collected before your donation can also be used to support vital research. If a full donation is needed, Lifeblood will invite donors to take part in a study and consent is always required.
Here’s a look at what our scientists are researching now, and what’s on the horizon for 2026.
Donor research
Our experts in the donor research team want to know what makes a great donor and how to find more of them. In 2025, the team looked into blood donation as part of the workday and ran workshops to understand how we can help more people on their donation journey.
In 2026, a group of donors are testing eLearning modules designed to help them become blood donation advocates. If your friend suddenly seems much more convincing when suggesting you donate, they might have our researchers to thank!
Product research
Many of our researchers focus on blood components like red blood cells, plasma and platelets. This research is vital in developing new blood products and investigating how we can improve existing ones. One exciting area of study is the potential of lab grown blood. In the future, lab-grown blood could be critical for people with extremely rare blood types, or people who receive many blood transfusions. While a breakthrough in this field is still years away, our team is also looking into how we can improve existing products — like platelets. Our researchers are working to extend the seven-day shelf-life of platelets by deep freezing them. An extended shelf-life could help us ensure more platelets are available to the people who need them most, no matter their location.
In 2026, the team are exploring new products like whole blood for pre-hospital transfusion, or bioengineered skin for burn wound closure. Both products have the potential to save lives, and our exploration wouldn’t be possible without you.
Large scale research
Blood donors also play a vital role in tracking viral spread in the Australian population. This type of research is called serosurveillance and is currently being used to track SARs-CoV-2. Other large-scale studies are using blood samples to examine how climate change is impacting the blood supply, explore the links between mammalian meat allergy and cardiovascular disease, and investigate how genomic databases can help predict uncommon blood group variants.
How can I contribute?
Every donation you make could contribute to our research and impact thousands of lives for the better. You’ve read a small sample of our program, but there’s much more to contribute to — check out our annual reports to learn more.
If you’d like to participate in Lifeblood research, make sure your contact details are up to date and you’ve consented to research communications in your communication preferences settings (Lifeblood app or online). That’s it. We’ll be in touch if you’re eligible for one of our studies.
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