releases: https://mcadams.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=334
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
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| https://mcadams.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=334 | McAdams gives plasma donations to ARUP/U of U research on possible COVID-19 treatment | 2020-05-21 | 2020 | 2020-05 | Democrat | House | UT | Ben McAdams | M001209 | mcadams.house.gov | legacy | Sandy, Utah Congressman Ben McAdams joined physicians from ARUP Laboratories and University of Utah Health to highlight research into the effectiveness of convalescent plasma as a possible COVID-19 treatment. ARUP Laboratories and University of Utah Health can give convalescent plasma to COVID-19 patients under the federal Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) national expanded access protocol program. ARUP began collecting COVID-19 convalescent plasma from individuals in April. Plasma is the liquid part of blood with antibodies that can be collected from survivors of COVID-19. Researchers want to know how COVID-19-specific antibodies might help other patients fight the disease. McAdams was hospitalized for eight days after contracting the coronavirus. After recovering and testing negative, McAdams donated plasma to ARUP in April and again this week at the ARUP Blood Services Sandy Donor Center. If my experience can somehow play a small part in helping relieve suffering for other patients with COVID-19, I'm glad to participate. This promising research by doctors and scientists at ARUP and the University of Utah Medical Center may produce a treatment for those infected with this new virus, said McAdams. McAdams' donation contributed to an inventory of convalescent plasma that ARUP began building in April for research use. So far, two patients with COVID-19 have been transfused with convalescent plasma at University of Utah Hospital as part of the FDA expanded access program, which is led by Mayo Clinic. As the next step in their research, the U of U and ARUP hope to participate in a clinical trial, which is necessary to determine whether convalescent plasma can be used to treat COVID-19. In general, the role that antibodies play in controlling SARS-CoV-2 is yet to be established, so careful, rigorous studies of convalescent plasma transfusion are needed to better understand safety and efficacy, said Dr. Emily Spivak, U of U associate professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases. To collect convalescent plasma, ARUP uses apheresis technology, which is more robust than the typical whole blood collection process, said Dr. Ryan Metcalf, associate medical director of ARUP Blood Services and University of Utah Hospital Transfusion Services. With apheresis, the plasma can be separated from the blood and the red blood cells returned to the donor. Metcalf believes ARUP and U of U Health are in a good position to participate in a clinical trial because ARUP has carefully prioritized donations from individuals such as McAdams who are believed to have the highest numbers of antibodies. We want to maximize the chance that the units we collect will be efficacious, so we are prioritizing donations from those individuals who have a stronger antibody signal, Metcalf said. Those people tend to be the ones who were most ill from COVID-19. He and Spivak hope to know soon whether they will join a clinical trial. Until then, the donated plasma may only be used for patients who qualify under the Mayo Clinic-led expanded access program. The convalescent plasma effort is one of several COVID-19 related projects on which ARUP and the U of U are collaborating. Both are involved in projects to determine whether certain drugs can be used to treat COVID-19. They are also collaborators in the Utah Health and Economic Recovery Outreach (HERO) project, a massive COVID-19 testing effort to gather data decision makers can use as they work to keep Utahns safe and get them back to work. ARUP is proud of the role we are able to play both in providing testing needed to diagnose, manage and treat COVID-19 and in helping advance knowledge about the disease, said CEO Sherrie L. Perkins, MD, PhD. More information about the COVID-19 related research underway at ARUP and U of U is available here. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |