TOEFL® essay: Give or not to give blood?

[Hopeless_Girl]

Give or not to give blood?
Watching Radosław Pazura in one of the spots of campaign encouraging to volunteer blood donation have you ever considered execution of such a charitable deed? If you were a casualty who lives thanks to received blood what would you do to express your gratitude? There are many advantages of blood donating and fear of the unknown cannot stop us from helping each other. You have to decide what you have to lose and what to gain.
First of all, donated blood saves millions of lives each year. It is quite obvious that Prevention is better than cure. It is much more prudent to go to a blood bank than suffer from blood shortage. In other words, 45 minutes spent at licensed blood bank and short discomfort caused by insertion of a needle effects in such a quantity of blood that can decide about fate of people seriously injured in accidents. What is more, one cannot foresee whether an injured person will not be one’s relative. In a word, donating blood hurts a little, while having someone you care about need blood and not get it because it is not there is very painful.
Secondly, blood plays vital role in operations as well as in everyday treatment, which is intended for people suffering from leukaemia, various cancers or hereditary illnesses such as haemophilia. The fact that blood transfusion, which is necessary during chemotherapy, lengthens life of a child afflicted with leukaemia for one to few days shows that shortage of blood in banks may not only put one’s health at risk but also may decide about one’s death. In addition to this, it cannot be denied that without help of donors haemophiliacs would not enjoy relatively long and comfortable lives any longer. Thanks to medicines produced on the basis of plasma and platelets, blood components, haemophilia, sickle cell disease and aplastic anaemia are not deaths sentences any more.
On the other hand, opponents claim that one can get HIV and chronic diseases, for example hepatitis C by blood donating. As far as developing and Third World countries are concerned this is partly true, because of low sanitary standards. In practice at licensed bank the needle and other clinic materials used to take blood are new, sterile and used only once, after that disposed.
Furthermore, if we were to discuss also dangers of blood transfusion it could be argued that this procedure will always carry a certain risk of infection. But HIV and hepatitis C transmission can be virtually prevented, only if blood is screened for the presence of diseases or anti bodies produced against viruses. Not only a donor may profit from free blood tests but also receiver’s safety is assured. According to the United States health department, however, there were 39 transfusion- related cases of HIV since screening test became available in 1985. The risk of receiving an HIV positive unit of blood through a blood transfusion is 1 in 1.5 million today and it is decreasing because of frequently repeated tests and new methods of virus detection in blood.
Taking everything into account, it is clear that blood donating is fundamental for survival of people afflicted with various diseases as well profitable for donors, who may check for free their health on regular basis. Blood understood as a gift of life is a very rewarding payment for donor and a charitable deed in terms of morality.

I have a question: is it possible to use some data in this kind of essay? e.g.there were 39 transfusion- related cases of HIV