Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson Donating Blood for Coronavirus 'Hank-ccine' Research

Following their battle with COVID-19, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson are donating their blood and plasma after receiving confirmation that they carry antibodies for the novel coronavirus. 

As fans may recall, the couple tested positive for COVID-19 while in Australia and returned home to Los Angeles at the end of March after recovering from their symptoms. Now, the two are doing what they can in the fight against coronavirus. 

While appearing on NPR’s podcast Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me!, Tom shared updates on how he and Rita are doing. “We are just fine, dandy. We had all of the flu-like symptoms. My wife, Rita, was a little worse off than me. She had a very high temperature. And we were isolated so that we would not give it to anyone else,” he shared. 

The Forrest Gump actor went on to reveal that the two “just found out that we do carry the antibodies.” 

He added that they have not only been approached for studies but that they’ve volunteered to donate their blood and plasma.

“We will be giving it now to the places that hope to work on what I would like to call the Hank-ccine,” he joked. 

Most recently, the Saving Private Ryan actor’s wife detailed the couple’s coronavirus recovery. In an interview with CBS This Morning‘s Gayle King, Rita shared: “I was very tired. I felt extremely achey, uncomfortable, didn’t want to be touched and then the fever started. Looking back, I also realized that I was losing my sense of taste and smell.”

She added that her fever also at one point had gotten close to 102 and that around day nine, she was given chloroquine. 

“I can only tell you that I don’t know if the drug worked or it was just time for the fever to break,” she said. “But, my fever did break.”

source: eonline.com