Wyckoff: Mayor And Family Coronavirus-Free

WYCKOFF, NJ — Mayor Tim Shanley and every member of his immediate family received their coronavirus test results from Bergen County's mobile testing site, and he reports that all results were negative.

Shanley, who announced in a letter last week that his family received tests on Tuesday, said health concerns were not the reason for the test.

"We got tested to attend the Mobile Testing run by Bergen New Bridge Medical for Wyckoff, not because we were symptomatic but to be leaders," he said.

Shanley added that comment after referencing a Patch report at the end of last week that his son had received results early, and tested negative.

"Your news article caused many to worry unnecessarily," he said.

"We were being leaders to protect Wyckoff and trying to encourage testing since many people are not symptomatic and are carrying this virus and spreading it as a result unknowingly."

Shanley also noted that he took an antibody test, which came back positive. He added that he never experienced any COVID-19 symptoms.

According to the CDC, a positive antibody test results mean the body has antibodies from an infection with the virus that causes COVID-19.

However, the CDC notes, there are also instances when positive antibody tests mean antibodies are present from an infection with a virus from the same family of viruses, such as the one that causes the common cold.

Having antibodies to the virus may provide protection from getting infected again, but there's some conflicting thought related to how long they may provide that protection.

In a recent article for The Atlantic, Derek Thompson spoke with several scientists to discuss a study published by researchers at King's College London.

The study yielded concerning headlines related to something the general population thought they had a handle on: antibodies protect you from the coronavirus.

For example, the San Francisco Chronicle wrote about the study, with the headline reading "With Coronavirus Antibodies Fading Fast, Vaccine Hopes Fade, Too."

Essentially, what the scientists concluded is also what the CDC says about antibodies.

"Having antibodies to the virus that causes COVID-19 may provide protection from getting infected with the virus again. If it does, we do not know how much protection the antibodies may provide or how long this protection may last," the CDC said.

Add antibodies to the ever growing list of things we don't know about the coronavirus.