Australian whose blood saved 2.4 million dead babies

One of the most prolific blood donors in the world, whose plasma saved the lives of more than 2 million babies, has died.

James Harrison died while sleeping in an elderly home in Nueva Wales del Sur, Australia, on February 17, his family said Monday. He was 88 years old.

Known in Australia as the man with the golden arm, Harrison’s blood contained a rare antibody, anti-D, which is used to make medications delivered to pregnant mothers whose blood is at risk of attacking their unborn babies.

The Blood Service of the Australian Red Cross that paid tribute to Harrison, said he had pledged to become a donor after receiving transfusions while undergoing great chest surgery when he was 14 years old.

He began to donate his blood plasma when he was 18 and continued doing it every two weeks until he was 81 years old.

In 2005, he had the world record of most donated blood plasma, a title that was until 2022 when he was surpassed by a man in the United States.

Harrison’s daughter, Tracey Mellowship, said her father was “very proud to have saved so many lives, without any cost or pain.”

“He always said he does not hurt, and the life that Save could be yours,” he said.

The softness and two of Harrison’s grandchildren also received anti-D immunizations.

“He was glad (James) listening to the many families like ours, which existed due to their kindness,” he said.

Anti-D soaps protect babies not born from a mortal blood disorder called hemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn, or HDFN.

The condition occurs in pregnancy when the mother’s red blood cells are incompatible with that of her growing baby.

The mother’s immune system then sees the baby’s blood cells as a threat and produces antibodies to attack them. This can seriously damage the baby, causing severe anemia, heart failure or even death.

Before Anti-D interventions were developed in the mid-1960s, one in two babies diagnosed with HDFN died.

It is not clear how Harrison’s blood became so rich in Anti-D, but some reports said it had to do with the transfusion of mass blood that he received at age 14.

There are less than 200 anti-D donors in Australia, but they help an estimated 45,000 mothers and their babies every year, according to the Australian Red Cross blood service, also known as Alma.

Lifblood has been working with the Walter Medical Research Institute and Eliza Hall of Australia to cultivate anti-D antibodies in the laboratory replicating Harrison’s blood and immune cells and other donors.

The researchers involved Hope made antis made can unify some women of women in workers around the world.

“Creating a new therapy has long been a ‘Holy Grail’,” said Lifblood research director David Irving.

He observed the scarcity of donors committed to a regular donation, which can produce antibodies in sufficient quality and quantity.