NEW YORK: Administering convalescent plasma from recovered Covid-19 patients can radically improve likelihood of survival among blood cancer patients hospitalised with the deadly virus, according to a study.

The study was conducted by researchers from the Washington University in the US indicates a 48 % reduced risk of death for Covid patients who had blood cancer and had received convalescent plasma compared to similar patients who did not receive this treatment. According to researchers, the survival benefit with convalescent plasma was even greater in patients who were admitted to the intensive care unit (60 % reduced risk of death) and those who needed mechanical ventilation (68 % reduced mortality).

"These results suggest that convalescent plasma may not only help Covid-19 patients with blood cancers whose immune systems are compromised, it may also help patients with other illnesses who have weakened antibody responses to this virus or to the vaccines," said Jeffrey P. Henderson, Associate Professor of medicine and of molecular microbiology at the University's School of Medicine in St. Louis.

"The study also emphasises the value of an antibody therapy such as convalescent plasma as a virus-directed treatment option for hospitalised Covid-19 patients," Henderson added. The findings are published in the journal JAMA Oncology.

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