A first case of an HIV-positive man who went into long-term remission after being treated for less than a year with an intensified multi-drug cocktail of AIDS medicines added to hopes on Tuesday of a possible future cure for the disease. The intensified treatment was halted after 48 weeks, doctors said on Tuesday, and 57 weeks later his HIV DNA in cells and his HIV antibody test remain negative. He cautioned, however, that four other HIV-positive patients treated in the trial with the same intensified drug cocktail saw no positive effect against the AIDS-causing virus. Hopes of a cure for AIDS have been boosted in recent years by two separate cases of remission in men who are described by HIV doctors as “functionally cured” after being treated with highly risky and complex bone marrow transplants. Commenting on this latest case, which was presented at an AIDS conference in San Francisco, Sharon Lewin, an HIV specialist at Australia’s Doherty Institute, said it was “very interesting” but raised many questions.

Source: The Star July 07, 2020 17:03 UTC