“Man With The Golden Arm” Whose Blood Saved The Lives Of 2.4 Million Babies Makes His Final Donation
In 1951, 14-year-old James Harrison from Australia awoke from a major chest surgery. Doctors removed one of his lungs and kept him hospitalized for three months. During this difficult time, Harrison learned that he was alive largely due to a vast quantity of transfused blood he had received. Then and there, he vowed he’d become a donor himself. Former Australian laws required blood donors to be at least 18 years old, so the boy had to wait 4 more years. But Harrison kept his promise. Donating regularly to the Australian Red Cross Blood Service for 60 years, the organization estimates that Harrison saved millions of lives.
Soon after Harrison became a donor, doctors told the man that his blood might solve a deadly problem. “In Australia, up until about 1967, there were literally thousands of babies dying each year, doctors didn’t know why, and it was awful,” Jemma Falkenmire of the Australian Red Cross Blood Service told CNN. “Women were having numerous miscarriages and babies were being born with brain damage.” We now know that the cause of these terrible things was rhesus disease, a condition where a pregnant woman’s blood starts attacking her own unborn baby’s blood cells.
Rhesus disease occurs when a pregnant woman has rhesus-negative blood (RhD negative) and the baby in her womb has rhesus-positive blood (RhD positive), inherited from the father. If the mother has been sensitized to rhesus-positive blood, usually during a previous pregnancy with an rhesus-positive baby, she may produce antibodies that destroy the baby’s “foreign” blood cells. The doctors discovered that Harrison has a rare antibody in his blood and in the 1960’s they worked together extensively, using it to develop an injection called Anti-D. Anti-D prevents mothers with rhesus-negative blood from developing RhD antibodies during their pregnancy.
Doctors are clueless as to why Harrison has this rare blood type. Their best guess suggests it might have something to do with the transfusions he received when he was 14. The blood service also says that there are no more than 50 people in Australia known to have the antibodies. “Every bag of blood is precious, but James’ blood is particularly extraordinary <…>. Every batch of Anti-D that has ever been made in Australia has come from James’ blood.” Falkenmire said. “And more than 17% of women in Australia are at risk, so James has helped save a lot of lives.” About 2.4 million, to be exact.
Known as “The Man with the Golden Arm,” James Harrison has made 1,173 blood plasma donations – 1,163 from his right arm and 10 from his left. “It becomes quite humbling when they say, ‘oh you’ve done this or you’ve done that or you’re a hero,'” Harrison told CNN. “It’s something I can do. It’s one of my talents, probably my only talent, is that I can be a blood donor.”
“They asked me to be a guinea pig, and I’ve been donating ever since,” the hero told the Sydney Morning Herald. “I’d keep on going if they’d let me.” But Mr Harrison has surpassed the donor age limit and the Blood Service seeks to protect his health. On Friday, Mr Harrison made his final benefaction. He was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 1999.
When James Harrison was 14, the doctors removed one of his lungs and kept him hospitalized for three months
Image credits: Australian Red Cross Blood Service
During the difficult time, Harrison learned that he was alive largely due to the transfused blood he had received
To give back, he became a blood donor himself
Image credits: Australian Red Cross Blood Service
During the next 60 years, James Harrison has made 1,173 blood plasma donations – 1,163 from his right arm and 10 from his left
Image credits: 9news
Australian Red Cross Blood Service estimates that Harrison saved 2.4 million lives
Image credits: 9news
Harrison has a rare antibody in his blood and in the 1960s he and health professionals used it to develop an injection called Anti-D
Image credits: 9news
Anti-D is the main answer to a deadly problem called rhesus disease
Image credits: 9news
Rhesus disease occurs when a pregnant woman has rhesus-negative blood (RhD negative) and the baby in her womb has rhesus-positive blood (RhD positive), inherited from its father
Image credits: 9news
If the mother has been sensitized to rhesus-positive blood, she may produce antibodies that destroy the baby’s “foreign” blood cells
Image credits: 9news
For the babies, it can result in brain damage or death
Image credits: 9news
“I’d keep on going if they’d let me” said Mr Harrison. But he has surpassed the donor age limit and the Blood Service seeks to protect his health
Image credits: 9news
James Harrison on his final donation, surrounded by Anti-D babies he saved
Image credits: Steven Siewert
To learn more about “The Man with the Golden Arm,” watch the video below
Mr Harrison was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in 1999. On Friday, he made his final benefaction
This is the kind of thing we want to see on bored panda, not "What your drink says about you" and c**p clickbait!
I disagree. While this is nice to hear about, and touching, people also like fun quizzes and laughs. That post showed up on featured because people liked it, while I had to dig around to find this. Neither posts are bad, they have their own goodness.
Load More Replies...What an awesome guy! People like this is what makes this world a better place.
My grandmother was RH- as well, O- blood, and she lost her first 3 babies from this problem. Then my dad was born and he was sickly but made it. And then my uncle after him. Without the shot, as it wasn't around just yet. I am also O-, rh- and so his my husband. But we didn't know his blood type when I first got pregnant and I also had to have the Rhogam shot to be sure all was ok. After that we found out he was also O- and our next three children were born without problems. All six of us are sitting here with the best blood type to donate. Hubby has had a surgery and is on meds that eliminates him from the donation program, but the rest of us are helping out as we can!
And they say that super heroes do not exist... This man is one of the greatest, I say!
This is such a beautiful post, and such a wonderful man, to learn such importance at such a young age, but stay true to it years on. We have been rewarded many many times over from his gift of giving, by the people that exist because of his kindness. It is not the first time I have seen him mentioned in posts, but it was a definite eyeopener into how much he really has done, every other post only mentioned rare blood type and donating, which was special enough, but he changed the future of parenting in such a monumental way. Thank you very much to the Author of this post, it was awesome.
he has saved millions of lives with the amount of blood he donated
Load More Replies...God I wish everyone had such a kind heart as this man. Amazes me everyday. God bless him and everyone else.
This exact thing happened in my family. First baby (me), B positive, no problems, and because nobody was aware of the rhesus issue my brother, the second baby, almost died at birth. He still has some congenital issues that stem from the complications of it. So a massive, massive thank you to James Harrison, whose kindness is written on his face, for his selflessness!
Should mention that we don't get paid for giving blood. Some countries do, I believe.
I was shot in the leg and in the shoulder jumping in front of bullets to save a corporal from death in Afghanistan a few years ago and nearly bled out when the medics got there and bandaged the holes
I am glad they made it on time. Thank you for being so brave as to save another ♥
Load More Replies...I never knew. It was pure luck that they came across his rare antibody. Erythroblastosis foetalis was a disease that didn't knew any cure . And now all it take r two shots. This guy saved my sister's life. He is super cute I wanna give him a hug.
Wow! One every 20 days, and plasma is even longer to give. That's a real dedication!
The neat thing about plasma donation is that you get your red blood cells returned. So you can donate more frequently. Not taking anything away from him. He has done great kindness.
Load More Replies...It's too bad you told the whole story in the preliminaries. I didn't want to look at the photos because I've already read the story. That being said, this man makes me regret not donating blood regularly. I've donated a couple gallons, but I'm 60 years old and I have a lot of catching up to do!
Anti-D isn't a "blood type" as was indicated in the original post - "types" refer to the pattern of antigens on the surface of blood cells. It's more accurate to say that it's a marker of his antibody/immunoglobulin/gammaglobulin profile. The astonishing thing in this isn't that he was immunised during his own transfusions, but that he continued to make do much anti-D for many decades after the transfusions - I wonder if he may have been inadvertently infused with donor D+ haematopoietic stem cells that have kept a low-grade immunisation process occurring throughout his life. This may be an avenue of fruitful research...
The RhoGam article is filled with disinformation. I am an Rh- mother. Once you are sensitized, and have an affected baby, that needs to be transfused, or dies in utero, Rho.Gam will NOT allow you to have more healthy children, unless those babies are Rh-. Then RhoGam has nothing to do with it. Also this man's blood did not save the babies. It was merely the reason that they learned how to prevent the reaction. Any Rh- sensitized mom has the antibodies and can give blood for more RhoGam to be made.
This is on my to-do list but I have a crippling fear of needles. I NEED to get over it!
Please have a go at donating. Now days it is quick , easy, and makes you feel good because you are helping. Australian blood donating is not paid for, purely good people volunteering their blood. Sadly there are some conditions that stop you donating (to protect your own health mostly ). But have a look here >>>>>https://www.donateblood.com.au/ <<<<<<< for more info.
I do not know. Hopefully more people will be inspired by this story, and try donating. Maybe someone else does have the exact type of blood. The research continues, and improvements are continually happening. It is harder for women to donate because we run low on iron. If you are pregnant ( or about to be ) or breast feeding they will not let you donate to protect your health. In the 1980's nurses were not allowed to donate -again to protect our health. The rules can change as research continues.
Load More Replies...Your article has two errors. Doctors are not "clueless" as to why James Harrison has Anti-D antibodies in his blood. The body manufactures them when a person with Rhesus negative blood is transfused with Rh positive blood. Mr Harrison would have received Rh positive blood during the operation. Also, there are 50 Anti-D donors in the state of New South Wales (and I'm one of them!) There are 160 anti-D donors in Australia.
This is the kind of thing we want to see on bored panda, not "What your drink says about you" and c**p clickbait!
I disagree. While this is nice to hear about, and touching, people also like fun quizzes and laughs. That post showed up on featured because people liked it, while I had to dig around to find this. Neither posts are bad, they have their own goodness.
Load More Replies...What an awesome guy! People like this is what makes this world a better place.
My grandmother was RH- as well, O- blood, and she lost her first 3 babies from this problem. Then my dad was born and he was sickly but made it. And then my uncle after him. Without the shot, as it wasn't around just yet. I am also O-, rh- and so his my husband. But we didn't know his blood type when I first got pregnant and I also had to have the Rhogam shot to be sure all was ok. After that we found out he was also O- and our next three children were born without problems. All six of us are sitting here with the best blood type to donate. Hubby has had a surgery and is on meds that eliminates him from the donation program, but the rest of us are helping out as we can!
And they say that super heroes do not exist... This man is one of the greatest, I say!
This is such a beautiful post, and such a wonderful man, to learn such importance at such a young age, but stay true to it years on. We have been rewarded many many times over from his gift of giving, by the people that exist because of his kindness. It is not the first time I have seen him mentioned in posts, but it was a definite eyeopener into how much he really has done, every other post only mentioned rare blood type and donating, which was special enough, but he changed the future of parenting in such a monumental way. Thank you very much to the Author of this post, it was awesome.
he has saved millions of lives with the amount of blood he donated
Load More Replies...God I wish everyone had such a kind heart as this man. Amazes me everyday. God bless him and everyone else.
This exact thing happened in my family. First baby (me), B positive, no problems, and because nobody was aware of the rhesus issue my brother, the second baby, almost died at birth. He still has some congenital issues that stem from the complications of it. So a massive, massive thank you to James Harrison, whose kindness is written on his face, for his selflessness!
Should mention that we don't get paid for giving blood. Some countries do, I believe.
I was shot in the leg and in the shoulder jumping in front of bullets to save a corporal from death in Afghanistan a few years ago and nearly bled out when the medics got there and bandaged the holes
I am glad they made it on time. Thank you for being so brave as to save another ♥
Load More Replies...I never knew. It was pure luck that they came across his rare antibody. Erythroblastosis foetalis was a disease that didn't knew any cure . And now all it take r two shots. This guy saved my sister's life. He is super cute I wanna give him a hug.
Wow! One every 20 days, and plasma is even longer to give. That's a real dedication!
The neat thing about plasma donation is that you get your red blood cells returned. So you can donate more frequently. Not taking anything away from him. He has done great kindness.
Load More Replies...It's too bad you told the whole story in the preliminaries. I didn't want to look at the photos because I've already read the story. That being said, this man makes me regret not donating blood regularly. I've donated a couple gallons, but I'm 60 years old and I have a lot of catching up to do!
Anti-D isn't a "blood type" as was indicated in the original post - "types" refer to the pattern of antigens on the surface of blood cells. It's more accurate to say that it's a marker of his antibody/immunoglobulin/gammaglobulin profile. The astonishing thing in this isn't that he was immunised during his own transfusions, but that he continued to make do much anti-D for many decades after the transfusions - I wonder if he may have been inadvertently infused with donor D+ haematopoietic stem cells that have kept a low-grade immunisation process occurring throughout his life. This may be an avenue of fruitful research...
The RhoGam article is filled with disinformation. I am an Rh- mother. Once you are sensitized, and have an affected baby, that needs to be transfused, or dies in utero, Rho.Gam will NOT allow you to have more healthy children, unless those babies are Rh-. Then RhoGam has nothing to do with it. Also this man's blood did not save the babies. It was merely the reason that they learned how to prevent the reaction. Any Rh- sensitized mom has the antibodies and can give blood for more RhoGam to be made.
This is on my to-do list but I have a crippling fear of needles. I NEED to get over it!
Please have a go at donating. Now days it is quick , easy, and makes you feel good because you are helping. Australian blood donating is not paid for, purely good people volunteering their blood. Sadly there are some conditions that stop you donating (to protect your own health mostly ). But have a look here >>>>>https://www.donateblood.com.au/ <<<<<<< for more info.
I do not know. Hopefully more people will be inspired by this story, and try donating. Maybe someone else does have the exact type of blood. The research continues, and improvements are continually happening. It is harder for women to donate because we run low on iron. If you are pregnant ( or about to be ) or breast feeding they will not let you donate to protect your health. In the 1980's nurses were not allowed to donate -again to protect our health. The rules can change as research continues.
Load More Replies...Your article has two errors. Doctors are not "clueless" as to why James Harrison has Anti-D antibodies in his blood. The body manufactures them when a person with Rhesus negative blood is transfused with Rh positive blood. Mr Harrison would have received Rh positive blood during the operation. Also, there are 50 Anti-D donors in the state of New South Wales (and I'm one of them!) There are 160 anti-D donors in Australia.
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