James Christopher Harrison OAM (27 December 1936 – 17 February 2025) was an Australian blood plasma donor whose plasma contained antibodies that made it valuable for treatment against Rh disease. He donated 1,173 times from age 18 to 81, making his final donation on 11 May 2018 in compliance with Australian policy prohibiting blood donations from those past age 81. Nicknamed "The Man with the Golden Arm", he was estimated to have saved the lives of over 2.4 million babies.

Early life
James Christopher Harrison was born in Junee on 27 December 1936.[1][2] In 1951, at the age of 14, he underwent major chest surgery that required a large amount of blood; despite his fear of needles,[3] he made a pledge to give back by donating blood as soon as he reached the required age of 18.[4][5]

Blood donations
Harrison started donating in 1954.[6][7] After the first few donations, it was discovered that his blood contained unusually strong and persistent antibodies against the D Rh group antigen. Blood which contains a high level of anti-D antibodies can be processed to create immunoglobulin-based products used to prevent haemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN). These products are given to Rh(D) negative mothers of unknown or Rh(D) positive babies during and after pregnancy to prevent the creation of antibodies to the blood of the Rh(D) positive child. This antigen sensitization and subsequent incompatibility phenomenon causes Rh disease, the most common form of HDN.[7][8]

Harrison was one of the founding donors of the New South Wales Rh Program, one of the first in the world, in 1969; he continuously donated from then onwards. Unlike whole blood, blood plasma can be donated as often as once every two weeks, allowing him to reach his 1,000th donation in May 2011. This resulted in an average of one donation every three weeks across 57 years. Commenting on his record, he said: "I could say it's the only record that I hope is broken, because if they do, they have donated a thousand donations."[8] On 11 May 2018, he made his 1,173rd and last donation in compliance with Australian policy prohibiting blood donations from those past age 81.[9]

Through their donations, the members of NSW's Rh Program have provided millions of doses of anti-D and helped prevent thousands of deaths and stillbirths, as well as many more instances of sickness and disability caused by HDN. Over his lifetime, Harrison's donations amounted to tens of thousands of doses worth of antibodies and had contributed to every batch of anti-D produced in NSW.[7] His donations are estimated to have saved the lives of over 2.4 million babies.[9] He was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) on 7 June 1999.[10]

In 2007, Harrison was critical of plans to open up Australia's plasma donation to foreign corporations. He believed that opening up the trade will discourage volunteer donations. This opening of trade stemmed from a review of the country's free trade agreement with the United States.[11] In 2011, he was nominated in the New South Wales Local Hero division of the Australian of the Year awards.[1]