OneBlood is leading a worldwide effort to locate very specific blood donors to help a 2-year-old Florida girl who’s fighting cancer.

The patient, who the organization has only identified as "Zainab," has an aggressive childhood cancer called neuroblastoma, and an extremely rare blood type, where she's missing an antigen called Indian B or Inb.

"Statistically, the only people who are likely to be a match for Zainab are people of Pakistani, Indian or Iranian descent. Of these populations, less than 4% of the people are actually missing the Indian B antigen," says OneBlood in a statement.



So far, OneBlood has identified three matching donors, including two from the United States and one from the United Kingdom, which is the first time the organization has received an international donor for a local patient.

Additional donors are still needed, and OneBlood is hoping to identify at least seven potential donors for sustained future care. According to OneBlood, if you think you might be a match, you must meet the following criteria:

- MUST be exclusively Pakistani, Indian or Iranian descent – meaning the donor’s birth parents are both 100% Pakistani, Indian or Iranian
- MUST be blood type “O” or “A”
- All donations for Zainab must be coordinated with OneBlood in advance to ensure the additional compatibility testing is performed.

All donations must be coordinated with OneBlood in advance to ensure the additional compatibility testing is performed. Visit the site for donation information.

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