If you currently survived Coronavirus and you're a man, the United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS) wants you to donate your plasma for testing. This was after studies shown that men have more antibody-rich plasma compared to women. It also means that once men get diagnosed with COVID-19 and healed from it, his blood will be more helpful to heal other people experiencing the virus.
Study: Men have more antibodies than women but more prone to getting the virus
Everything bad that happens in our life may have a silver lining on it. For men, specifically.
The Guardian reported that the U.K. hospitals are now seeking more donations of blood plasma from COVID-19 survivors in the country. It was explained that blood plasmas with antibodies can help other patients to fight against the virus.
Anyone infected with the virus has its own antibodies. These cells are the main fighters of our body when an unexpected virus takes over the human organs. Most of the time, the convalescent plasma, wherein the antibodies were found, are formed when someone recovered from COVID-19.
Though every person could have these antibodies, not everyone has strong units of it. And men are the usual population that got the stronger ones.
Study shows that out of the 600 plasma donations in the past months in the U.K, 43% from men have more antibodies. This was compared to women only having 29%.
"We'd still like to hear from anybody who had coronavirus or the symptoms," said Prof David Roberts, associate director for blood donation at NHS Blood and Transplant. "More plasma donors are needed. But we would especially want to hear from men."
The reason behind this fact is that men are more likely to acquire the virus than women. Therefore, it produces more antibodies that are stronger to fight the virus.
Can you donate your plasma?
Not all people are allowed to donate their plasma to hospitals. Of course, patients are needed to be survivors of the virus.
All the organ donators are required to take a few days after their recovery from the virus to make sure that the antibodies are fully developed inside the bodies.
The process is also quick. The report says that it only takes 45 minutes to separate plasma from the blood that you will be donating.
'It was a no-brainer.'
BBC interviewed one of the plasma donators to share his experience. Simon Callon, 51, from St Helens, Merseyside, said that donating plasma is a 'no-brainer' and very easy to do.
His father died from coronavirus, so he wanted to make sure that no one else would be dying from the same disease.
"I don't want anybody going through what happened to my dad. He died in a hospital ward with no family or friends, with a nurse holding his hand. Only 10 people were allowed at his funeral," he said. "If you can save somebody or help somebody, you would do it."
