James Harrison has given joy to countless mums thanks to his blood donations.
Shy and squeamish, blood donor James Harrison admits he is the unlikeliest of super heroes. But to mums of Australia, the 73-year-old is a medical marvel who has brought happiness to so many families.
Not only does James have a heart of gold, he also has the gift of life running through his veins in the form of a rare blood type. His blood has in fact been used to help a staggering 2.2 million babies safely enter the world.
James has an antibody in his plasma that prevents Rhesus disease – a severe form of anaemia in newborn babies – and every batch of the life- saving vaccine, Anti-D, carries a little bit of James’s blood.
“It feels like every week I’m welcoming another 1200 babies into my own special family,” he says. James has made 985 donations to the Red Cross, making him Australia’s highest-ever blood donor and second in the world. Next year he will notch up his 1000th – yet he can’t bear to watch the needle go into his arm.
Woman’s Day caught up with James, from the NSW central coast, on his winter break on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.“The warmer weather is good for the body … a chance to recharge the batteries,” he says. “It’s important I take care of myself, there are so many people dependent on me.”
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