A man has told how he was left fighting for his life after developing a rare condition which saw his immune system attack his nervous system. Mika Ashby started out with pins and needles only for his lungs to begin to shut down.
He was rushed to intensive care and when the now 32-year-old finally awoke it was in the ICU needing support to help him breathe. Now he is speaking of his ordeal to raise awareness of the plasma medicine treatment that saved his life – and the urgent need for donors.
Mika, from Redcar, said: “I started out with chest pains and pins and needles in my feet and arms. The whole thing was a scary experience. I woke in ICU with a tracheotomy, unable to breathe without it.”
Mika was diagnosed with a serious form of the autoimmune disorder Guillain Barre syndrome (GBS). This is a disease that affects nerves throughout the body and limbs. It is usually triggered by an infection.
It is rare but may affect anyone. It occurs more commonly in early adulthood and in the elderly. It is generally more common in males than females but is also more common in women immediately after they have given birth.
Every year about 1,500 people develop GBS in the UK. Between one in 10 and one in 30 will die as a result of it and those who survive often spend months in hospital and have life-long complications.
Mika was put in an induced coma at the James Cook University Hospital after his lungs began to shut down. He needed urgent plasma medicine infusions after the sudden onset of the life-threatening neurological condition.
The NHS has relied on imports of the plasma from overseas but now NHS patients around the country are receiving a lifesaving medicine made from the plasma of blood donors in North Yorkshire. This marks the first time in a quarter of a century plasma is being used to make life-saving medicines for NHS patients, reducing reliance on imports.
These lifesaving medicines can only be made from human blood. Plasma makes up 55 per cent of our blood and contains antibodies which strengthen or stabilise the immune system.
The antibodies are separated and made into medicines, which treat people with life-limiting illnesses such as immune deficiencies. Over the past three years, plasma from blood donors across England has been stored up, and it has now been made into medicines with the first patients now receiving the medicines.
Mika said: “I know first-hand how this medicine saves lives. It’s a relief to know we’re now making it from local blood donations too.
“I am so grateful to everyone who donates blood. You are not just helping people with your red blood cells – now the plasma in your blood donation is helping people too.”
The plasma medicine he received, immunoglobulin, contained healthy donor antibodies which helped his immune system to stabilise. He was finally discharged in September 2019, after around three months in hospital.
“The medicine brought me back to life, really. My parents were so scared I was going to die,” said Mika. “I would say to anyone who can donate, please do it.”
In England, around 17,000 people rely on immunoglobulin to save or improve their lives each year. And thousands of patients rely on albumin – another plasma medicine – which is used in childbirth, trauma, and to treat liver conditions.
The news is important because there is a global shortage of plasma medicines. The NHS has previously relied solely on imported plasma medicines as a lasting legacy of Variant Creutzfeldt–Jakob disease.
The new supply of UK plasma medicines will bolster supplies to the NHS. It will reduce reliance on imports, which can be hit by reductions in supply and prices spikes.
There are two ways that you can give plasma. Every time you give blood your plasma may be used too. Or you can donate plasma at three specialist sites in Birmingham, London and Reading.
A recovered plasma donation gives us around 270 millilitres of plasma. A plasma donation can give us between 560 millilitres and 700 millilitres.
Daniel Cooper, NHSBT Assistant Director for Blood Donation Operations, said: “Thanks to our amazing blood and plasma donor across England, for the first time in a quarter of a century, patients are now receiving plasma medicines made from donations taken in England.
“We need more blood donors to help make more of these medicines and build UK self-sufficiency. Your donation is now helping save lives in new ways. Go to blood.co.uk to become a donor.”
Dr Susan Walsh, the Chief Executive Officer of Immunodeficiency UK, said : “This is a historic moment – patients can now get lifesaving and life-improving immunoglobulin medicine made from the plasma of UK blood and plasma donors.
“Immunoglobulins recognise dangerous micro-organisms and help the immune cells to neutralise them. It’s a vital treatment for people with immune disorders.”
Urging people to donate blood she added: “Your red blood cells will be used as normal. But now the blood plasma can also help vulnerable people with immune disorders.”
• The NHS needs more blood donors. Go to www.blood.co.uk to become a donor.