Allow Sexually Active Gay/Bisexual Men To Donate Blood Freely In The U.K.

Gay and Bisexual men cannot donate blood if they have had sex with another man in the past 12 months. This was originally based on a homophobic/sexist idea that derived from the late 70's/early80's, but is now based on correlational data with no causal relationship highlighted and a general lack of information. Stripping sexually active gay and bisexual men from their human right to donate blood is not only strengthening inequality and promoting discrimination against the LGBT community, indirectly encouraging the idea that gay/bisexual men are "disease-ridden", but it is also costing human lives.

Only 4% of adults in the U.K. donate blood, we cannot afford to waste valuable time and blood by denying donations based on an archaic homophobic and sexist myth and statistics that should not be generalised to the entire population.

We need to push for correct and specific research and studies into a causal relationship between anal and oral sex and blood borne diseases/STIs (including HIV) in all types of sexual relations. This research needs to be carried out as soon as possible, there is no time to waste when it comes down to blood donations and saving human lives.

For more details about the loopholes within the current guidelines, as well as how I was personally affected, please read my email below:

Hello,

My name is Niall Murray and I tried to donate blood today, but disappointedly found out that I couldn’t due to the fact that the last time I’ve had sex with a man was in the last 12 months. At the time, I was not angry; I thought it was rather understandable, seeing as sexually active gay (or in my case, bisexual) men are statistically more likely to acquire HIV and other sexually acquired infections.
However, what confused me, and rather frustrated me, was that a woman who has had sex with a man - a man who has had sex with another man in the last 12 months - could still be allowed to donate blood if her blood was to be tested [along with the blood of the man she has had sex with] and to be all clear of any infections. Why then can’t the man donate blood, even if his blood is shown to be all clear through screening tests too?

If two men have sex, they both are screened before and after sex for infections and both times come out all clear, why aren’t they allowed to donate blood? Does HIV have a habit of popping up out of nowhere? If so, why isn’t anyone else at risk? Why only gay/bisexual men, and not gay/bisexual women or heterosexual men and women?
Also, what are your policies on straight men having anal sex with women? What research has been made on unprotected heterosexual anal sex? If that isn’t an issue, then is it because of the homosexual nature of men having sex with other men that make them more at risk of acquiring infections? If that’s the case, then why aren’t women having sex with other women an issue? Or does HIV just pop up out of nowhere only when males have sex with other males?
Another question I have is: what is your stance on transgender people? They are born a man but consider themselves to be female; they go through hormone therapy, have their male genitalia removed or changed and then have sex with a man. Is she at a high risk because she was born as a male, or is it due to penile insertion into the anus? Which not only brings us back to asking why heterosexual anal sex isn’t an issue, but why homosexual oral sex is an issue?

I was able to ask the nurses at my local blood donation center – The Three Swans Hotel, Market Harborough, Leicestershire – but none of them were able to give me a clearly defined answer, merely responding that they were just abiding by the rules that were given to them. In fairness, I believe that this was a fair response from them; they were just doing their job, complying with the rules given to them whilst remaining calm, friendly and professional.
To find acceptable, reasonable answers to my questions, I have read your PDF document (linked below), but it discouragingly answers none of my questions. The only useful thing I have gained from it is that gay men must unfairly abstain from sex for 12 months for very unclear reasons, based on correlational statistics and not on specified experiments that state a causal relationship between sexual contact between two males and blood borne infections and sexually transmitted infections including HIV.
(http://www.blood.co.uk/pdf/men_who_have_sex_with_men_and_blood_donation.pdf)

I’m pleased that sexually active homosexual/bisexual men are no longer permanently banned from donating blood, but how could a lifetime ban suddenly drop to only a 12-month ban? Perhaps – and I think this is very likely, although I personally admit that I am not a health professional - the 12-month ban could be decreased further?

Only 4% of adults in the U.K. donate blood, we cannot afford to waste valuable time and blood by denying donations based on generalised statistics and the lack of information.

I can be contacted via email: niall.murray63@gmail.com

Yours sincerely,
Niall Murray

Since then, I have been contacted by a NHS Blood and Transplant representative

The situation exists due to not enough research being made.

HOWEVER

It is not about IF the research will happen, it's about WHEN.

With only 4% of the 64 million people in the U.K. donating blood, time is of the essence. SaTBO and the Medical Science and Research team for NHS Blood and Transplant need to start to address the situation urgently. We need to push for new, more precise research that carry out studies into a possible causal relationship between blood borne diseases/STIs and men having sex with other men within the past 12 months.

Anyone can experience anal and oral sex, not just homosexual/bisexual men. The guidelines should not single out gay/bisexual men purely because they are more likely too.

Everyone has an equal chance of acquiring HIV when having anal or oral sex, we need to place more focus on the research surrounding this topic and allow the minority to exercise their human right to donate blood and save human lives.

FURTHER INFORMATION:

Here is the Donor Selection Criteria Review published onto the internet by SaBTO on 11th April 2011 - https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/216109/dh_129909.pdf

"In the UK population as a whole, where risk factors were reported for new diagnoses of blood borne viruses, heterosexual sex was the most commonly reported risk factor for both acute Hepatitis B infection (63 %) and human immunodeficiency virus (54 %) during 2009." (page 7)

Feel free to look further into the review.

Here is a Review made by SaBTO in July 2013 - https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/264413/SaBTO_Report_Tissues__cells_MSM_v3.pdf

Page 21 addresses the statistical findings surrounding MSM and Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) - "The incidence in males remains high and the excess of male cases may be due to msm, however, due to lack of information this is difficult to confirm."

Page 22 address the transmission of HIV in the U.K. through MSM based on estimations and statistics.

Feel free to look further into the review.

Here is a study made by the Guttmacher Institute about the prevalence of oral sex in young heterosexual couples -
http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/3800606.html

Political followings aside, here are two videos on YouTube from a Lib Dem Conference that was made against the ban:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKiwu4pEc4E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGK4bxFDxdA&spfreload=10

Also, here is a blog that I have written that may have a bit more information on it:

http://theaniallator.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/lgbt-discrimination.html