James Harrison, Blood Donor, Has Saved Two Million Babies And Counting
James Harrison is a blood donor whose donation to the medical industry has literally saved millions of lives. He didn’t invent a cure for cancer, but he did give something which counters what could be a fatal infant health issue.
Central coast Australia native Harrison has donated an extremely rare kind of blood plasma with antibodies which help reverse a condition called Rhesus disease, as previously reported by The Inquisitr. The disease occurs when a mother with negative type blood gives birth to a baby with positive type blood.
Harrison is no stranger to needing help himself. At the age of 14, he needed blood while undergoing an operation to remove a lung, and in his gratitude, he decided to be a life-long giver. He probably didn’t know at the time that his repayment would be what saved over 2 million infant lives.
When doctors discovered that James Harrison, as a blood donor, carried the specific blood plasma necessary to develop the Anti-D injection, he was dubbed “the man with the golden arm.” Since the discovery, his story has gone viral, reaching even more ears than his blood has treated.
Now at age 78, Harrison can claim that he’s donated blood over a thousand times, and saved even more lives with his generosity. He has been declared a national hero.
This man’s blood has saved the lives of 2 million babies. Meet “The Man with the Golden Arm”: http://t.co/dDIwPHrNNe pic.twitter.com/Xpk9npkUuL
— CNN (@CNN) June 9, 2015
According to Fox News, Jemma Falkenmire of the Australian Red Cross explained the impact Harrison has made in his lifetime.
“In Australia, up until about 1967, there were literally thousands of babies dying each year. Doctors didn’t know why, and it was awful. Women were having numerous miscarriages, and babies were being born with brain damage.”
James Harrison’s blood donor gift even gave him a healthy second grandson. He has said that the idea of what he’s done “makes you feel good yourself that you’ve saved a life there, and you’ve saved many more – and that’s great.”
Harrison has confessed to looking away when the needle goes into his arm.
“Never once have I watched the needle go in my arm. I look at the ceiling or the nurses, maybe talk to them a bit, but never once have I watched the needle go in my arm. I can’t stand the sight of blood, and I can’t stand pain.”
Facing his fears to save the lives of millions of babies, Australian native blood donor James Harrison has proven to be a true hero.
[Image via Hannah Peters / Getty Images]
