I do realize that just because this happens to one man it doesn’t mean the treatment will work for all. So before you jump to conclusions, remember this case still needs more time and to be duplicated by others.
German doctors announced ground-breaking news in the fight against HIV and AIDS. An HIV-positive patient, who had developed acute myeloid leukemia, is said to have been cured of his HIV infection after a bone marrow transplant, which was performed in 2007.
Timothy Ray Brown - Cured of AIDS
The ‘Berlin Patient,’ a U.S. citizen named Timothy Ray Brown, underwent a procedure in which HIV-resistant stem cells from an individual with an unusual genetic profile were introduced into his body. The donor patient’s CD4 cells lacked the CCR5 co-receptor — the most common variety of HIV uses CCR5 co-receptors as a “docking station,” attaching to it in order to enter and infect CD4 cells. People with this particular genetic mutation are almost completely protected against infection.
Brown underwent grueling treatment for leukemia, two stem cell transplants and also suffered from a serious neurological disorder, which required a brain biopsy. Before the stem cell transplant he received chemotherapy treatment that destroyed most of his immune cells, as well as total body irradiation and received immunosuppressive drugs to prevent rejection of the stem cells. After all of this, HIV was undetectable by both viral load testing (RNA) and tests for viral DNA within cells.
In an interview with the German news magazine, Stern, Brown was asked if might have just decided to live with HIV rather than undergo this lengthy and difficult process. “Perhaps,” he answered. “Perhaps it would have been better, but I don’t ask those sorts of questions anymore.”
Berlin doctors published his detailed case history in the New England Journal of Medicine in February 2009. Now they’ve published a follow-up report in the journal Blood, saying: “It is reasonable to conclude that cure of HIV infection has been achieved in this patient.”
Will we ever find a cure to HIV/AIDS?
The revelations about the ‘Berlin Patient’ point to the fact that a cure for HIV could be developed using genetically engineered stem cells. NAM Aidsmap reports that the German researchers and San Francisco-based immunologist Professor Jay Levy are stressing the importance of suppressing CCR5-bearing cells, either through transplants or gene therapy.
Dr. David J. Ores, a general practitioner on the Lower East Side of Manhattan says that while the thought of a cure for HIV is appealing, he’s not sure if this one case is the answer.
“This patient has many unique factors,” Ores told them. “He had leukemia. Twice. He had all sorts of chemotherapy and radiation. Twice. His genetics are unique to himself (like anyone else). The HIV could be dormant for now. We also don’t know which sub-type of HIV he had. Or if he had other infections in the past which effect his immune system.”
Ores goes so far as to question whether the ‘Berlin Patient’ actually had HIV in the first place. “Maybe his leukemia affected the HIV test since HIV is, in fact, leukemia as well. Recall, HIV was originally classified as ‘HTLV type one’ which stands for Human T-Cell Leukemia Virus (HTLV). So maybe his other leukemia affected the test for the other HIV leukemia (HIV).”
Still, Ores says that if the research is indeed valid, any advancements it creates toward finding a cure would be a positive thing.
Last year, several US research groups announced they had received funding to explore the development and implantation of CCR-5 deficient stem cells.
But even if these techniques prove to be successful, they will no doubt be very expensive, meaning that they would be reserved for people with no treatment options left, or cancer patients already requiring a bone marrow transplant.
The ‘Berlin Patient’s’ road to recovery was not an easy one — he endured chemotherapy, immuno suppresive drugs and stem cell transplants — but in the end, his tough journey could pave the way for advancements toward an eventual cure for HIV that all people can benefit from.
Read more about this on blogs below:
http://techtribenews.wordpress.com/2009/07/17/hivaids-cure-getting-little-attention-and-it-really-works/
http://ecofrenhealth.wordpress.com/2010/12/14/stem-cell-transplant-has-cured-hiv-infection-in-berlin-patient-say-doctors/
http://deaconjohnspace.wordpress.com/2010/12/15/lifenews-com-pro-life-news-report-121510/
