Recovered COVID-19 patient donates plasma for study of possible virus treatment

Andrew Elchuk was spring cleaning at his Saskatoon home after returning from a family trip to Europe when he got the news that he had tested positive for COVID-19.

He had been feeling tired and short of breath. The notification from e-health confirmed his suspicions as to why. 

"It just felt really surreal," said Elchuk, who explained that climbing the stairs in his bi-level home became a task while he was sick. "I would have to take a break and catch my breath because it felt like I had just gotten off a stair climber at the gym." 

What would follow was a difficult month for his family: his wife, mother and father were all later diagnosed with the disease, with his father spending weeks in hospital.

Now, with his family recovered, Elchuk has the opportunity to participate in a trial run by Canadian Blood Services seeing whether previously infected COVID-19 patients might hold clues to a future treatment.

The four had been in Germany on what was supposed to be a near-month-long trip; they headed back to Saskatchewan on March 16, just week into their travels, immediately after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Canadians abroad to come home.

They self-isolated as a group and everything seemed fine at first. Then, Elchuk began developing symptoms. 

His father Paul ended up being hit by the virus the hardest, though. 

The 69-year-old was rushed to St. Paul's Hospital and stayed there alone for 28 days, on a ventilator for about half of his stay. 

"We didn't know intubation was so severe and that a lot of people don't come out of it," said Elchuk. "I'm very thankful that we're in Saskatchewan and not a place like New York where they would've had to make a decision between giving him a ventilator or a young person.

"He probably would've died if we lived in a different part of the world."

Paul lost 30 pounds and went from easily walking about 10 kilometres a day in Europe to making it 100 metres with a walker during rehabilitation. The Prince Albert man is still gaining back his strength and movement, now resting with his wife Christine at their cabin at Candle Lake. 

While scientists are still uncertain whether someone who has recovered from COVID-19 can become infected with it again, those who have gotten better — and whose immune systems have made antibodies to fight the virus — hold great interest to researchers trying to develop treatments.

So, Canadian Blood Services is collecting blood plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients for a national clinical trial called CONCOR-1, which will test the safety and effectiveness of using that plasma to treat other patients.

Elchuk said his brother told him about the study and he knew immediately that he wanted to participate. 

"A lot of people are really getting hit hard by this and it could be a year, year and a half, until we have a vaccine. So if there is something to do to help with an effective treatment then it kind of feels like it's a responsibility to do it," said Elchuk. "I kind of think of it as the least I can do."

Elchuk was the perfect candidate for the trial. All participants must be men under the age of 67. He just had to wait until he was symptom free for 28 days.

He signed up and was given an appointment within a few days. He said the full donation process took about 45 minutes. Now, he's waiting to find out if researchers can use his antibodies.

Elchuk is one of more than a dozen individuals in Canada who have donated COVID-19 convalescent plasma so far. The first donation was done in Vancouver on April 29. 

Canadian Blood Services is now taking donations in Calgary, Charlottetown, Edmonton, Halifax, Hamilton, London, Ottawa, Regina, Saint John, Saskatoon, St. John's, Toronto, Vancouver and Winnipeg.  

COVID-19 convalescent plasma has not yet been proven to be a safe and effective treatment for patients with the virus. 

"The results from the clinical trial will inform future decisions on the wider availability of convalescent plasma," said Canadian Blood Services on its website. "It will be an important contribution to research on a global scale that could help patients in Canada and around the world."

You can sign up to take part in the trial online.