A 7th person with HIV is probably cured after stem cell transplant for leukemia, scientists say
A German man has probably been cured of HIV, a medical milestone achieved by only six other people in the more than 40 years since the AIDS epidemic began.
A German man has probably been cured of HIV, a medical milestone achieved by only six other people in the more than 40 years since the AIDS epidemic began.
The German man, who prefers to remain anonymous, was treated for acute myeloid leukemia, or AML, with a stem cell transplant in October 2015. He stopped taking his antiretroviral drugs in September 2018 and remains in viral remission with no rebound. Multiple ultra-sensitive tests have detected no viable HIV in his body.
In a statement, the man said of his remission: “A healthy person has many wishes, a sick person only one.”
The case, which investigators said offered vital lessons for HIV cure research, is expected to be presented Wednesday by Dr. Christian Gaebler, a physician-scientist at the Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, at the 25th International AIDS Conference in Munich.
“The longer we see these HIV remissions without any HIV therapy, the more confidence we can get that we’re probably seeing a case where we really have eradicated all competent HIV,” Gaebler said.
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