Tom Hanks was one of the first celebrities to announce he tested positive for COVID-19 while filming on location in Australia earlier this year. Since the announcement, Hanks has recovered and is back stateside. In addition to sharing his road to recovery with his fans, Hanks went a step further this week and donated plasma to aid in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
Here’s last week's bag of plasma. Such a bag! After the paperwork, it’s as easy as taking a nap. Thanks @arimoin and UCLA. Hanx pic.twitter.com/15WblGiVwe
— Tom Hanks (@tomhanks) April 29, 2020
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In his Twitter post, Hanks told his fans, “"Here’s last week's bag of plasma. Such a bag! After the paperwork, it’s as easy as taking a nap," Hanks tweeted on Wednesday. "Thanks @arimoin and UCLA. Hanx."
Rita Wilson, his wife, also donated plasma. The couple first announced that they had tested positive for coronavirus on March 11. They have since returned to Los Angeles after a two-week quarantine in the Down Under. Hanks and Wilson have been open about their experience with living with the virus.
Hanks appeared on the NPR show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! earlier this month. He told host Peter Sagal, he'd been approached to donate his blood for COVID-19 testing. Hanks also said, “We have not only been approached; we have said, do you want our blood? Can we give plasma?”
Plasma donations are needed in order to find a cure for COVID-19. Plasma from patients that recovered from the virus contains COVID-19 antibodies. These antibodies may be able to be used to help others fight off the disease. Thanks to people like Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, we may be closer to a cure. Hanks jokes, “In fact, we will be giving it now to the places that hope to work on what I would like to call the Hank-ccine."
