TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida teenager is battling an aggressive form of sickle cell disease and urgently needs rare blood donations.
Before Gigi Felix can undergo a life-saving bone marrow transplant, doctors need 50 units of very rare blood.
So far, they've secured 34 units, an increase from earlier this week.
"Doctors have the match for her. Her brother is the perfect bone marrow match, but they cannot proceed forward with that transplant until 50 units of very rare and very specific blood donors are found to help save her life," said Susan Forbes, Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications and Public Relations for OneBlood.
WATCH: Search continues for very rare blood donors to help save Miami teen's life
Tampa Bay 28 first shared the Miami teen's story on Tuesday.
More than 3,000 people have shared Tampa Bay 28's Facebook post with her story. We've also heard from many of you by phone or email asking how you may help.
OneBlood said they've seen an increase in first-time donors.
"We really need to keep that momentum going because we still have a ways to go yet until we reached the 50 units of blood. We want to thank our community for stepping up and doing this because Gigi's story is really starting to go viral on social media which is excellent. More people are sharing the story from news media and from the OneBlood social media channels," said Forbes.
The 18-year-old teen from Miami has been in and out of the hospital for most of her life. The inherited blood disorder causes her constant pain.
"Sickle cell is a very painful disease. Gigi explained it to me as feeling like there are splinters running through her veins, and it’s extremely painful," said Forbes.
Forbes said Gigi has undergone numerous blood transfusions over her life, making finding compatible blood more difficult.
"It’s so important that they not only receive the same blood type, but they received genetically similar blood and this helps prevent them from building up antibodies and the more antibodies a person builds up from blood transfusions, the harder it becomes to find compatible blood for them," said Forbes.
"For people who require repeat blood transfusions. It’s very important that they receive blood from the same ethnicity because it helps prevent them building up antibodies," she added.
To be a potential match for Gigi, donors must be African American or of African descent. Their blood type must be O Negative.
Only 7% of the population has O Negative blood.
"The reason that she needs to have blood from the same ethnicity comes down to antigens. We all have antigens on the surface of our red blood cells, and our genetics determine the antigens we have and the antigens we lack. For certain patients, you have to match it down to the antigen level that is where genetics come into play," said Forbes.
Forbes said to donate blood, visit our nearest OneBlood donation center or Big Red Bus.
"Just come in and donate, and OneBlood will take it from there. We’ll do all the testing to determine your blood type and your antigen profile," said Forbes.
For more on efforts to help, click here.
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Urgent plea for rare blood donors to help save Florida teen's life
Gigi Felix needs very specific donors to help save her life. She has an inherited blood disorder.
