GALLOWAY, Ohio — The American Red Cross has declared an emergency blood shortage, reporting the lowest number of blood donors nationwide in 20 years, and it may delay medical procedures.

What You Need To Know

  • Kadin Yano was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia, which affects his blood cells

  • He had undergone a bone marrow transplant and relies on regular blood transfusions to keep him healthy

  • The Yano family is hosting a blood drive in honor of Kadin to encourage blood donations

It's especially personal to one teen in Ohio.

Kadin Yano was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia. It's a rare condition keeping his body from producing enough new blood cells.

"I noticed recently, like, playing sports, playing baseball… I get winded super easily, and I feel like I'm about to pass out,” Kadin said. "It was a very out-of-body, I guess, to know something was actually wrong."

The blood disorder has affected Kadin’s health.

"I have no immune system. So, the slightest thing could get me sick,” he said.

It has also changed his everyday life.

"I can't really do anything,” Kadin said. “I see people posting on social media about going out and doing stuff with friends, and I really can't do that right now."

Kadin is taking a break from sports for now and does school remotely.

He has undergone a bone marrow transplant and relies on regular blood transfusions. He said what's saving him is the kindness of strangers.

"Somebody showed me the kindness, like some random person just gave me the bone marrow," he said. "They didn't even know me, like it was a random donor, and they just gave me that bone marrow." 

Kadin said he hopes to one day pay it forward.

"I got to pay that back, I guess," he said.

Kadin's mom said his blood levels are stable right now but will likely need monitoring for the rest of his life.

The Yano family is hosting a blood drive to encourage people to donate in honor of Kadin. It's at the Scioto Ridge United Methodist Church on January 29th from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. 

To learn more about donating, go to https://www.redcross.org/give-blood.html

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