Hereford patient's appeal over plasma donor shortage

Wen Stone says plasma supply issues have affected other patients she knows

A plasma donation recipient is asking people to give someone the "gift of a normal life" as part of an appeal for more donors.

Wen Stone, 31, from Hereford, needs medicine made from plasma to support her immune system.

She says a reliable supply enables her to maintain steady levels without needing hospital visits.

The NHS resumed donations in April 2020, but said locally its centre was running at 14% capacity.

The UK relies on imported plasma medicines, but the NHS says global supplies have been under pressure because of rising demand and also Covid-19 affecting donations in the USA.

To build up long-term supplies, the NHS opened 11 donation centres, but said its site on New Street, Birmingham, had about 400 appointments going empty every week.

About 1,300 people in the West Midlands received immunoglobulins last year, the NHS added. With that in mind, a six-month advertising campaign has begun to attract more donors.

The NHS has launched an appeal on social media and in public places to drive up donor numbers

Ms Stone, who is currently shielding with her parents in Redditch, Worcestershire, says she knows of other patients who have been forced to change their medication because of plasma shortages.

She says "that can cause issues" for their ongoing treatment.

She has been taking plasma-based medicines for the last 10 years and will have to take them for the rest of her life because of damage chemotherapy did to her immune system when she was 21.

"Plasma donations mean I get to live a bit more of a normal life without being bed-bound with infections," she said.

"You're giving someone a gift of a normal life."

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