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Tom Hanks' Blood Being Used To Develop Covid-19 Vaccine

Tom Hanks' Blood Being Used To Develop Covid-19 Vaccine

Both he and his wife Rita have offered to donate antibodies to find a 'Hank-ccine'

Amelia Ward

Amelia Ward

As Covid-19 continues to dominate headlines around the world, Tom Hanks and his wife Rita have done their bit to help fight the spread of the virus.

Having contracted the infection back in March, the high-profile couple have been approved to donate their blood as part of the effort to find a vaccine for the virus.

Tom and Rita, both 63, were among the first celebrities to test positive for the disease. Hanks had been filming Baz Luhrmann's forthcoming biopic about Elvis Presley when he and his wife started to experience symptoms of the Covid-19 virus.

After going in to self isolation, they were treated in hospital before returning to LA.

The couple warned people to self-isolate to protect vulnerable people from COVID-19.
Instagam/Tom Hanks

Speaking to NPR, Hanks revealed that he and Rita have both taken antibody tests, which confirmed they have had the virus, and do in fact have antibodies in their blood - antibodies, of course, are very valuable in the race to find a vaccine.

He revealed: "We have not only been approached; we have said, 'Do you want our blood? Can we give plasma?' And, 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."

NPR host Peter Sagal responded: "There could be no better ending to this international catastrophe than if the cure turns out to be the blood of Tom Hanks."

Hanks joked: "I'm not trying to hog it with a copyright or - you know, I'm not going to the patent office."

Tom and Rita announced the news of their illness on social media in March.

"Hello, folks. Rita and I are down here in Australia," he said on Facebook.

"We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too.

"To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus, and were found to be positive.

"Well, now. What to do next? The medical officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks' will be tested, observed, and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires. Not much more to it than a one-day-at-a-time approach, no?

"We'll keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves!"

Thankfully, both made a full recovery and are now putting those precious antibodies to good use.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Celebrity, Coronavirus, tom hanks