RNZ

Every Sunday, Sean Bridge loads up a needle with someone else’s antibodies and injects himself under the skin of his thigh.

Since his diagnosis with an immune deficiency as a baby, the 35-year-old has received plasma transfusions to help boost his immune system – for decades at the hospital, but now, by his own hand at home.

“People donate plasma, I inject it into myself and that gives me protection.”

It was a kind of “crowd-sourcing”, he said.

Bridge is one of a growing number of New Zealanders, almost 20,000 in the year to June, requiring plasma-derived medicines.

Sean Bridge. Photo / Baz Macdonald, RNZ

Plasma, the pale yellow liquid component of blood, helps the body recover from injury and prevent infection and is used to help treat up to 50 illnesses, including cancer and auto-immune diseases.

But with demand surging for plasma products, at a rate of 8% a year, the Blood Service is forecasting the country’s plasma stock will reach critical levels and is calling for 25,000 donations by the end of November.

Donor relations team leader Sarah Field said plasma was like “liquid gold” and the range of conditions it could treat was expanding rapidly.

She hoped the new donation centre in Porirua, the second in the Wellington region, would help the service reach its goal.

Speaking to RNZ four days after the facility opened, Field said 150 people had already been through its doors.

“We’re seeing a lot of donors, who [are] what we call ‘lapsed’, so haven’t donated for a couple of years, come back to donating since we’ve opened.

“Going from Porirua to Newtown is a long-haul so being able to donate somewhere locally, they’re all coming back.

“It’s been really good to see.”

New Zealand has had to spend millions on imported plasma-based medicines. Photo / Baz Macdonald, RNZ

For local plasma donors Hans Beyer-Reiger and Maureen Comis, the location was a game changer.

“It’s awesome,” Beyer-Reiger said, “it’s great for Porirua, it’s a good space ... much bigger than Wellington.”

Like Beyer-Reiger, Comis had years of donating under her belt, but had recently moved further away from the centre in Newtown.

With the doors opening in Porirua, she anticipated fortnightly or monthly plasma donations – which meant a lot.

Lapsed donors are going back to donating again because of the new location. Photo / Baz Macdonald, RNZ

“It’s nice to think you’re helping somebody else and I’ve got two very good friends with cancer and I knew that they had plasma, so I like to think I can help somebody.”

“It’s not a hardship at all. It’s nice to walk out of here knowing that you could have made a difference.”

The difference between treatment and not was stark, according to Bridge.

Plasma helps the body recover from injury and prevent infection. Photo / Baz Macdonald, RNZ

He said people with his condition could suffer permanent damage to their bodies from being unable to fight off colds and infections.

“Honestly, I’m probably one of the ... luckier ones, particularly with the likes of plasma, [and] being able to have kids, which I honestly didn’t think would be possible.

“It’s awesome.”

Bridge is currently using imported plasma-based medicine, which New Zealand has had to spend millions on to bridge the gap between donations and demand.

Locally sourced plasma is preferred for local recipients. Photo / Baz Macdonald, RNZ

As a recipient, local plasma was preferred for a range of reasons, he said, including the fact it provides protection from locally circulating viruses, and urged people to consider donating.

“If you can get out there and donate some of your time and obviously some of the good stuff inside you, that gold, you’re going to help a lot of people.”

  This story was first published on rnz.co.nz