Donor Insight Newsletter May 2018
Data collection Donor InSight (DIS)-III completed
Just over 3,000 donors who participated in DIS-I and/or DIS-II provided data for the second follow-up of DIS. In DIS-III we have, next to questionnaires on lifestyle, health status, cognitive functioning and iron-deficiency-related symptoms, also blood samples. Blood samples were used to get a full blood count and to measure blood lipid levels, haemolysis 28 days after blood collection, iron parameters including zinc protoporphyrin (ZPP) and ferritin. DNA sequencing is expected soon. A subset of the DIS-III participants also wore accelerometers to objectively measure physical activity and sedentary behaviour. More information on DIS-III measurements
Donor InSight current and future research
Donor InSight (DIS)-III data have been cleaned and are ready to use! DNA results are expected soon, so in a short amount of time research questions involving genetics can be studied as well. Our department already uses DIS data to answer several interesting research questions, but the data offer many more possibilities (read more)
Newest team member, meet Tjeerd
In December 2015, Tjeerd Piersma started as a PhD student at the department of Donor Studies (Sanquin Research) and the Center for Philanthropic Studies (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam). His project focuses on blood donor careers, examining changes in blood donor behaviour over the life course from a sociological point of view. (read more)
Presentations and papers based on DIS data
In June 2017 Sanquin’s Donor Studies Department visited the 27th Regional Congress of The International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT). A total of 5 oral presentations and 5 posters were presented by our team at this international conference that brings together researchers, policy makers and professionals in the field of blood transfusion. Many of the poster and oral presentations use Donor InSight as main or background data source. Besides, several articles based on DIS data have been published in 2017. (read more)
