An Australian man is being credited with saving over 2.4 million babies. James Harrison has a rare antibody in his blood that has been used to protect babies at risk for Rhesus Disease. This hero has been donating blood every week for six decades to save the lives of these children. Now, he’s being forced into retirement.
James’ remarkable blood was detected during a surgery in 1951 when he was just 14-years-old. He has been called “the man with the golden arm” because of the healing powers in his blood. When he turned 18 and was able to donate blood, he committed to helping save the lives of millions of children. He has donated 1101 blood donations since that time. Now that he is 81-years-old, he is no longer permitted to donate.
Rhesus Disease occurs when a mother’s blood starts attacking her unborn child’s blood cells. This can result in brain damage or death of the child. James’ blood was used to develop an injection called Anti-D.
There were literally thousands of Australian babies dying every year until James began making donations. With over 17% of Australian women being at risk, James’ blood donations had a huge impact. He even saved the life of one of his grandchildren as his daughter was given the Anti-D vaccine.
James is considered a national hero in his homeland of Australia because of his dedication of over a half a century to donating his rare blood. But, he scruffs off such accolades and prefers to be humble about it.
“It becomes quite humbling when they say, ‘oh you’ve done this or you’ve done that or you’re a hero,'” the man with the golden arm said. “It’s something I can do. It’s one of my talents, probably my only talent, is that I can be a blood donor.”
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Doctors aren’t sure why James has this rare blood type. They believe it might have something to do with transfusions he had from his heart surgery as a young teen.
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Source: Daily Wire