Can Getting a Blood Transfusion Change my DNA?
The good news is that getting a standard blood transfusion cannot and will not change your DNA. Most people only receive red cells or blood plasma during medical procedures, and neither one of those blood components contain any DNA material. Transfused blood still needs to be a match to the recipient’s ABO blood type, but it does not contain any DNA coding from the donor. A blood test performed after a standard blood transfusion would still reveal only the patient’s DNA profile. This isn’t to say that human blood does not contain any DNA, however. White blood cells, which are usually removed from donated blood by a centrifuge, do contain DNA. If someone were to require a whole blood transfusion, the donor’s white cells would enter the recipient’s bloodstream and remain there until they expire, generally within 4 to 8 days. Such whole blood transfers are very rare, however, and the donor’s DNA would not survive long enough to have an effect on the recipient’s DNA. Conceivably, a blood t
