When it comes to blood types, you may know A, AB, B, and O—but those larger groups actually contain millions of different varieties. That’s because the surfaces of our blood cells are coated with antigens—up to 342 of them.

In earlier times doctors had assumed that an embryo missing all Rh blood-cell antigens would not survive, let alone grow into a normal, thriving adult but in 1961, scientists stumbled upon a new blood type they thought impossible: called Rh-null, meaning it’s lacking all 61 antigens in the Rh system.

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It was always a blurry and rare research topic and by 2010, nearly five decades later, some 43 people with Rh null blood had been reported worldwide.

Making it “the golden blood,” Rh-null blood can be accepted by anyone with a rare blood type in the Rh system and because Rh null blood can be considered “universal” blood for anyone with rare blood types within the Rh system, its life-saving capability is enormous

“It’s the golden blood,” quoted by Dr. Thierry Peyrard, Director of the National Immunohematology Reference Laboratory in Paris. (Current status may vary).

But Unfortunately, the Rh null blood group possessing person can only receive blood from people who are Rh null.

For these unique reasons and availability of Rh null blood system, there are programs like the American Rare Blood Donor program, and there are one or two European sites also for these purposes. The Rh null blood is used for research and extreme medical application that’s the reason why Rh null blood is shipped worldwide if needed.

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