Though she was sure to warn of temporary side effects from hydroxychloroquine, a drug President Donald Trump has suggested could be promising against the novel coronavirus, actress Rita Wilson said her fever broke after she took the therapeutic.
Wilson, along with her actor husband Tom Hanks, were two of the first celebrities to share with the public that they were infected with the China-originated coronavirus. As noted by The Daily Wire, the duo recovered from the virus in late March and returned home to the United States from Australia.
The “Mamma Mia” actress made the remarks about the chloroquine treatment on Tuesday morning, speaking to host Gayle King on CBS “This Morning” about the infection and her recovery.
“I felt extremely achy, uncomfortable, didn’t want to be touched, and then the fever started,” Wilson told King. “Chills like I’ve never had before.”
“On day nine, they gave me chloroquine,” she continued. “And I know people have been talking about this drug, but I can only tell you that, I don’t know if the drug worked or if it was just time for the fever to break, but my fever did break.”
Wilson went on to underscore the temporary side effects of the drug, such as nausea.
“But the chloroquine had such extreme side effects,” she said. “I was completely nauseous and I had vertigo. I could not walk and my muscles felt very weak.”
“I think people have to be very considerate about that drug,” Wilson added. “We don’t really know if it’s helpful in this case.”
In late March, “Lost” actor Daniel Dae Kim credited his COVID-19 recovery to hydroxychloroquine, calling it the “secret weapon” to his stabilized health.
“I need to say this in bold letters: Obviously, I am not a doctor, nor am I lawyer … So please don’t take my word as that of a medical professional,” Kim emphasized in a video posted to social media.
“That said, here is a treatment protocol I followed as prescribed by the amazing doctor,” he continued. “It was what’s called a drug cocktail, which means it’s a combination of different drugs. It consisted of Tamiflu, which is an anti-viral, the antibiotic azithromycin, more commonly known as a ‘Zpack,’ a glycopyrrolate inhaler, that was used to ease breathing and the inflammation commonly associated with COVID.”
“And here’s what I consider to be the secret weapon: hydroxychloroquine,” Kim stated. “This is a common anti-malarial drug that has been used with great success in Korea in their fight against the coronavirus. And yes, this is the drug that the president mentioned the other day.”
The actor noted it is “also the drug that Dr. Anthony Fauci cautioned us against,” noting that evidence of its effectiveness against COVID-19 is “anecdotal.”
“Well, add my name to those personal accounts, because I am feeling better,” Kim said.
Earlier this month, an international poll of more than 6,000 doctors found hydroxychloroquine was deemed the most highly rated treatment for COVID-19.
As noted by The Daily Wire, positive results from the drugs have thus far been largely anecdotal:
The Times repeatedly underscores that the treatment has not yet been proven to be effective by officials and highlights “concerns” among health experts about the Trump and Cuomo-promoted medications, which sometimes have dangerous side effects, like “fatal heart arrhythmia and vision loss.” Like The Washington Post’s editorial board, which has accused Trump of causing “damage” by pointing to the treatment as a potential “cure,” the Times suggests Trump, and to a lesser extent Cuomo, may be guilty of “raising false hopes in the American public” and “contribut[ing] to runs on supply and hoarding” of the drugs.
WATCH:
.@RitaWilson tells @GayleKing she took #chloroquine to treat COVID-19: I can only tell you that I don't know if the drug worked or it was just time for the fever to break. My fever did break but the chloroquine had such extreme side effects… We don't really know if it's helpful pic.twitter.com/8xej1NyhaQ
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) April 14, 2020