World Blood Donor Day is here. No excuses. I have an appointment in 16 minutes. Go find a donation center and give up a pint for the cause.

Why should you donate?

The need for blood is great--on any given day, approximately 34,000 units of Red Blood Cells are needed. Accident victims, people undergoing surgery, and patients receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer, or other diseases, such as sickle cell disease and thalassemia, all utilize blood. More than 23 million units of blood components are transfused every year.

Typically, each donated unit of blood, referred to as Whole Blood, is separated into multiple components, such as Red Blood Cells, Plasma, and Platelets. Each component is generally transfused to a different individual, each with different needs

About 12.6 million units (including approximately 643,000 autologous donations) of Whole Blood are donated in the United States each year by approximately eight million volunteer blood donors. These units are transfused to about four million patients per year.