Australian man, 81, donates blood 1,100 times

Australia's Red Cross Blood Service has lost a veritable hero in James Harrison. The 81-year-old man has dedicated time over 60 years to donating blood. 

And James is not just any blood donor. His blood contains a special antibody that is needed to produce Anti-D, a medication that saves the lives of babies who are at a high risk of contracting haemolytic disease of the newborn (HDN).

Without Anti-D, babies born to mothers with an opposite blood type may contract anaemia or a number of other diseases. James, who has donated blood every two weeks since he was in his 20s, has helped to save the lives of babies born to about two million Australian women. 

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James, who holds the Guinness World Record for donating blood, has visited the donor station 1,173 times. He has been hailed as a "super donor" and some have said he has a "golden arm". 

The Australian Red Cross only allows people to donate blood up until their 81st birthday, so James has, unfortunately, had to retire. He hopes more people will volunteer to donate and that someday someone will break his remarkable record.

Robyn Barlow, a programme coordinator with the Red Cross who has worked closely with James over the years, gave him his original donor record, which dates back to 1967 as a retirement gift after he made his last donation on 11 May. 

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