In Melbourne, Australia, a man who is credited with saving approximately 2.4 million babies over six decades through his record-breaking blood plasma donations has passed away at the age of 88, as confirmed by his family on Tuesday.

James Harrison, a former clerk in the New South Wales state railway department, passed away on February 17 in a nursing home on the central coast. His grandson, Jarrod Mellowship, reported that Harrison had initially shown resentment towards needles but nonetheless made 1,173 donations from the time he turned 18 in 1954 until he retired at the age of 81 in 2018.

Harrison was honored by the Guinness World Records in 2005 for his world record, a title he held until 2022 when it was surpassed by Brett Cooper from Walker, Michigan.

The Australian Red Cross Blood Service, also known as Lifeblood, has paid tribute to Harrison, dubbed the “Man with the Golden Arm.” He donated plasma that held a rare anti-D antibody that helped protect unborn babies from hemolytic disease of the newborn. This condition occurs when a pregnant woman’s immune system targets her fetus’s red blood cells, commonly affecting women who have Rh-negative blood type and their Rh-positive babies.

According to Lifeblood, Australia currently has only 200 anti-D donors who assist with providing treatments for around 45,000 mothers and their babies annually. Stephen Cornelissen, CEO of Lifeblood, described Harrison as an extraordinarily generous person who hoped for an Australian to one day surpass his donation record.

Harrison’s own daughter, Tracey Mellowship, received the anti-D treatment during childbirth for him and his brother Scott. Jarrod Mellowship noted that his wife, Rebecca Mellowship, also needed the treatment for the birth of three out of their four children.

Speculation is that Harrison developed a high concentration of anti-D due to blood transfusions he received during a lung surgery when he was only 14 years old. Upon reaching adulthood, Harrison’s father, Reg, told him that he was alive because of people who donated blood – inspiring Harrison’s lifelong commitment to donation.

His discoveries with anti-D application to combat hemolytic disease of the newborn were made in the 1960s, and Harrison held tight to the belief that his donations were no more important than any other donations, asserting that everyone has the potential to be as special as he was.

Born in Junee, New South Wales, Harrison is survived by his sister Margaret Thrift, his daughter, two grandsons, and four great-grandchildren.

Source: https://time.com/7264123/australia-james-harrison-blood-plasma-obit/