FLORIDA -- As the number of coronavirus cases in Florida grows, Governor Ron DeSantis is urging anyone who has COVID-19 antibodies to donate convalescent plasma to help treat sick patients. 

OneBlood has reported seeing a 500 percent increase in the need for convalescent plasma and said they're having a hard time keeping up with the demand, which is why Gov. DeSantis is urging people to donate. 

"The earlier you do it, the more effective it will be," DeSantis said during a news conference at OneBlood in Orlando on Monday. 

Doctors started treating COVID-19 patients with convalescent plasma a few months ago, and Dr. Rita Reik, the Chief Medical Officer for OneBlood, said while it's not 100 percent proven to be a cure for coronavirus, early data suggests it could be. 

Patients receive 200 milliliters of plasma, which is about one donation. 

"One of the best things you can do if you're somebody who has recovered from COVID-19 is to donate blood. Your plasma will be able to be used to help other patients and the success has been promising. I think if you look at a hospitalized patient now given treatment early they're doing better than patients were doing in March and April when the pandemic first hit," DeSantis expressed.

The first recipient of convalescent plasma in the southeast lives in Orlando. 

Michael Rathel went to the hospital because he was short of breath, and within a day he took a turn for the worse. Rathel was treated with convalescent plasma. 

"They said I had a 15 percent chance of surviving when I was at the stage I was, and the last hope was the convalescent plasma and within three days I woke up," Rathel said. 

Dr. Reik said a donation of convelescent plasma could possibly save the life of at least one coronavirus patient. 

"If I went in the hospital with coronavirus, I would want it. That's what I can say."

The state also added antibody testing to its drive-through sites over the last few weeks so people can see if maybe they already had the virus and didn't know it.