Black people are dying from a shortage of blood and organ donors.

There has been a rise in the number of black people giving blood and donating organs after they die - But the NHS says there is still a shortage.

This is because black people are ten times more likely to have a certain blood groups such RO and even inherit genetic conditions like sickle cell – which requires specific blood transfusions to treat.

However, black people are still less likely to donate due to a lack of tradition with donations and cultural barriers such as family disapproval.

Davinia Caballero, 33, from Brixton, London, needed a transplant after her kidneys were damaged by sickle cell disease.

She needed a dialysis and blood transfusions during her treatment.

Davinia received a kidney from her brother David through living donation in 2017.

She said: “I was lucky.

"Without my brother’s generosity I may have faced years on dialysis because of the lack of donors, particularly from black backgrounds.

“People in our community don’t talk enough about organ donation and that needs to change.

“More black people need to step up as blood donors.

“Blood transfusions helped me through dialysis and I have friends with sickle cell who rely on regular transfusions just to stay alive.”

More than 5,800 people from black backgrounds in London signed up to give blood in 2017 - almost double that of 2013.

Nationally there are 17,000 black blood donors compared with fewer than 13,000 five years ago – however they are still shy of the NHS’s 40,000 target.

Last year 25 people from black backgrounds donated organs after they died and 17 black people donated a kidney as a living donor.

There are currently 632 black people waiting for a transplant with the vast majority of those in need of a kidney.

Last year 31 patients from black backgrounds died waiting for a transplant.