A nurse who collects plasma donations on a daily basis in Chicoutimi, Saguenay – Lac-Saint-Jean, was able to see their benefit very closely following being hit hard by Guillain-Barré syndrome, which paralyzed her members without warning.
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“When the doctor told me it was Guillain-Barré and that I would need plasma, I said to myself, ‘oh yeah, I’ve come to this'”, said Marie-Josée Savard, who has been collecting plasma donations at Plasmavie in Chicoutimi for years.
Last December, the experienced nurse had to be treated with antibiotics for pneumonia due to influenza. But a few days later, things took a turn for the worse.
“I got up, I almost fell out of bed, I mightn’t have my legs, my hands, I mightn’t feel them, my arms were numb,” she described in an interview with VAT News.
After a battery of tests, including an electromyogram and a lumbar puncture, the diagnosis was made: the nurse suffered from Guillain-Barré syndrome, a neurological impairment caused by the immune system which attacks the nerves.
“It will block the signal that says to your body, raise your arms, your legs. It can go to the respiratory system. In my case, I was lucky, it didn’t go that far,” she said.
Ironically, to treat the problem, the nurse received treatment with immunoglobulins, a drug made from…plasma. She received 7 transfusions in total.
Her message on the importance of making donations, which she already hammered home during her work, takes on its full meaning today.
“We don’t know when it will happen to us. Come donate. Take time to varnish, it can help someone close or yourself. You don’t know when it’s going to happen, you never know,” she insisted.
These donations are used in particular for patients with cancer, those with autoimmune diseases and severe burns, listed Josée Larrivee, spokesperson for Héma-Québec.
“When we donate plasma, it’s really the protein part that we take […] These are 500,000 units of drugs that are made with the plasma of Quebecers, and it comes in 50 drugs, “she explained.
At Héma-Québec, we want to reduce plasma supplies abroad, and be more self-sufficient in Quebec.
“In 2019, we had 21% sufficiency, in 2 years, 31%. Our goal is to increase plasma self-sufficiency. What we are aiming for is to use the donations made by Quebecers for drugs for Quebecers,” added Ms. Larrivee.
Today, Marie-Josée is much better. Apart from some numbness in the fingers and feet, she has no sequelae.
“I feel very good, very happy, exclaimed Marie-Josée Savard. I’m going back to work in a few weeks, I can’t wait to see my colleagues.”
During his hospitalization, his colleagues and regular donors sent him encouragement. “I really appreciate it a lot, it touched me a lot at that time,” said the nurse with emotion.
