Anna Wintour's doctor son Charles Shaffer is ''quite ill and self-quarantining at home'' away from his family after treating coronavirus patients.

The US Vogue editor is very proud of her 35-year-old son for being part of the fight against COVID-19 and insists he will return to the Intensive Care Unit once he has recovered.

Wintour, 70, shared the news about her son as she opened up about her own coronavirus lockdown experience in a video for A Common Thread - a new fundraising initiative for the fashion industry set up by executives at Vogue and the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) to help struggling designers and fashion businesses.

She said: ''My son is a doctor. He is currently quite ill and self-quarantining at home, away from his wife and his two small daughters. But when he is able, he will return to the ICU at his local hospital. I am so proud of him and so grateful to all the health workers, first responders, nurses and doctors, who are fighting to reduce the spread of the virus and to save lives.''

Wintour also explained the motivation behind the A Common Thread initiative insisting it is so important to help designers survive the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which has resulted in stores being closed and fashion events cancelled all over the glove.

She said: ''The fashion industry has been hit hard. I have been speaking to so many American designers and others in the community who fear that they won't make their payroll or have had their orders returned, stores closed, who fear that their businesses and their livelihoods may not survive what we're going through. The fund we've created is intended to help them and the talented people they work with.''