An Arizona man trying to protect himself from being infected with coronavirus has died this week after ingesting chloroquine phosphate thinking it was a possible treatment, NBC News reports.

The man's wife said they both took it, thinking it would fend off COVID-19 after hearing ''chloroquine'' mentioned by President Trump and others as something that could be used in the fight against coronavirus, NBC reported:

The name "chloroquine" resonated with the man's wife, who asked that her name not be used to protect the family's privacy. She'd used it previously to treat her koi fish.

"I saw it sitting on the back shelf and thought, 'Hey, isn't that the stuff they're talking about on TV?'"

The couple — both in their 60s and potentially at higher risk for complications of the virus — decided to mix a small amount of the substance with a liquid and drink it as a way to prevent the coronavirus.

The wife - who is 'under critical care' - told NBC they both became very sick about 20-minutes later and called 911.

They had consumed a product used to kill parasites in an acquarium, thinking it was the same as the ''chloroquine'', which is used in treatment of malaria, rheumatoid arthritis and more, according to the CDC:

Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine are oral prescription drugs that have been used for treatment of malaria and certain inflammatory conditions....Based upon limited in-vitro and anecdotal data, chloroquine or hydroxychloroquine are currently recommended for treatment of hospitalized COVID-19 patients in several countries. Both chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have known safety profiles with the main concerns being cardiotoxicity (prolonged QT syndrome) with prolonged use in patients with hepatic or renal dysfunction and immunosuppression but have been reportedly well-tolerated in COVID-19 patients.

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