Man cured of HIV

[Destiny]

It's a miracle, simply a miracle, the first man ever cured of HIV: http://gizmodo.com/5713498/man-officially-cured-of-hiv

[insane_alien]

its not really a viable cure for most sufferers. for one, chemo and total body irradiation are extremely unpleasant things that require hospitalisation as it gets you a gnats testicle away from being declared dead and then finding a marrow donor who has HIV resistance AND is compatible enough to be used as a donor for you.

 

all this will provide is a new avenue for research, first, a 'safe' way to wipe out the immune system of the patient, then a way to introduce the mutation to existing bone marrow. (may involve taking a sample, performing the genetic modification, wiping out the bone marrow still inside and then reinserting the modified marrow.

 

still a bit drastic for a manageable disease though.

[mooeypoo]

Also, if anything, this is science, not a miracle. I would think we should give credit to the scientists and doctors involved for their hard work on this one. The advancement can open the door for a better or more effective cure in the future.

[Marat]

That whole radical irradiation procedure to destroy the immune system was done with the first kidney transplants in the 1950s, so it is nothing very new. The fact that it has not been used since is a good indication of how dangerous and harmful it is.

 

The current AIDS-'curing' procedure also requires a replacement immune system donor who is naturally immune to AIDS, which is a tiny subset of the population, and since the donor also has to be a Landsteiner blood type match for the recipient, you get an even smaller subset of that population group being acceptable donors.

 

In short, the entire procedure is a mere tour de force, exhibiting what can be done in a single, absurdly risky, ludicrously elaborate, experimental intervention to address a disease in a handful of cases. In this respect it is not unlike so many ridiculous tours de force of modern medicine, such as the Edmonton islet transplant protocol, which while putting on display a small-scale act of medical ingenuity, could never have the least significance for addressing disease on a general population level.

[divagreen]

Taken from the OP's article...

 

Strangely enough, the diagnosis that most concerned Timothy Ray Brown in 2007 was acute myeloid leukemia. HIV has been increasingly thought of as a manageable disease, though certainly a terribly burdensome one.

 

I am still trying to wrap my brain around how a person can have leukemia and the HIV virus at the same time.

 

I did stumble on

 

this.

[insane_alien]

well, HIV is a viral infection and Leukemia is cancer of the blood. I do not see how they are mutually exclusive.

 

HIV could have been sexually transmitted or by sharing needles and the Leukemia could have justcropped up by chance. neither are that rare that its impossible to have both.

[Destiny]

well, HIV is a viral infection and Leukemia is cancer of the blood. I do not see how they are mutually exclusive.

 

HIV could have been sexually transmitted or by sharing needles and the Leukemia could have justcropped up by chance. neither are that rare that its impossible to have both.

 

How is it impossible to have both?

[insane_alien]

it isn't impossible. its very possible. that was my point.

 

i completely reject the idea that it is impossible to have both leukemia and HIV.

[divagreen]

It is not so much as a question of causality as it is pathological function.

 

Note: This is not my area of expertise and welcome any corrections.

 

From my understanding, myelin leukemia produces an over-abundance of mutated white blood cells (along with regular white blood cells). This can indeed, cause leukopenia, as the number of functional white blood cells might be limited, depending upon the stage of the disease.

 

HIV is a virus that inhibits the production of T-cells (a type of white blood cell). What causes one disease to create an over-abundance, will cause another disease to produce a deficit.

 

I am having a hard time finding where both diseases were acute, at the same time. Usually the leukemia seems to be in remission. As was the case in the article provided by the OP and the one by me.