A nationwide COVID-19 study that is looking at infection prevention and curative early treatment is now underway, and researchers in Worcester are looking for your help."If you wait until someone is full blown sick, it's like trying to put out a forest fire with a cup of water," said Dr. David Sullivan of Johns Hopkins University. Sullivan would rather use a cup of water to put out the fire on a match stick, with that water essentially human plasma and the match stick is someone who is in the early stages after contracting COVID-19. "This is separate from treatment available in the hospital. We're trying to come up with something unique," he said. Reaching that unique solution is the focus of a plasma clinical trial now underway across the country. Unlike a vaccine that can take up to a month for the body to build effective levels of antibodies in order to fight the virus, patients are instead provided with antibody-rich plasma from other people who have successfully beaten COVID-19. "This is immediate immunity, and it's both an early treatment, as well as a prevention. It can do both," Sullivan said. "We want to make sure that we make this available to anybody who may be eligible," said Dr. Jonathan Gerber, who is helping with the nationwide study at UMass Medical Center in Worcester. Gerber is putting out the call for anyone local who may be eligible and would like to take part in the two trials that are currently underway. “So, it's for anybody that was recently exposed, and that means within a week of their exposure to COVID," Gerber said. "The second trial is for early outpatient treatment, people with mild or early signs." Separate from the study itself, Gerber wants to encourage anyone who may have tested positive for COVID-19 and have since recovered to consider donating their plasma.To learn more about the study or for information about how to enroll, please visit www.CovidPlasmaTrial.org or call 888-506-1199.