“I’ll put up my hand, whatever it is. I want to be a frontline soldier in the fight against COVID-19.”

At 70 years old, GP Dr Nicholas Stanley-Cary is part of an age group considered more likely to die or become seriously ill if he contracts the novel coronavirus.

But Dr Stanley-Cary has already had it — giving him what he hopes will be an additional layer of protection when he returns to work this week, even if the science isn’t settled.

He developed symptoms shortly after returning home to Perth from a European holiday in mid-March. At first, he thought he had a cold, or the symptoms were related to stress from a complicated journey. But then he tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.