# Big HIV Treatment News
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [November 14, 2008, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651 "2008-11-14T02:32:24Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/1 "2008-11-14T02:32:24Z")
[Cells target HIV.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7716449.stm)
> [@](#):
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> Cells have been successfully engineered in the laboratory to overcome one of HIV’s most effective defence mechanisms, say researchers.
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> The immune system cells, created by UK and US scientists, can lock on to HIV, even after it has mutated to throw them off the scent.
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> It is hoped the Nature Medicine study could lead to a more effective way of tackling HIV infection.
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> Tests on people with advanced HIV may start next year.
[Bone marrow transplant appears to cure HIV.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7726118.stm)
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> Doctors in Germany say a patient appears to have been cured of HIV by a bone marrow transplant from a donor who had a genetic resistance to the virus.
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> The researchers in Berlin said the man, who suffered from leukaemia and HIV, had shown no sign of either disease since the transplant two years ago.
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> But they stressed it was an unusual case which needed further investigation.
About 20 years ago, I remember seeing a news story about a patient with HIV who was given a bone marrow transplant, while the patient died (because of the disease which necessitated the transplant, **not** because of HIV) and the tests they ran on the patient after he/she had died revealed **no** signs of HIV anywhere in their body. The doctors then were saying, “This is not a cure.” (The reporter failed to ask _why_, despite my screaming at the TV for them to ask the question.) Interesting that this seems to have happened again.
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### Author:  [@Speaker\_for\_the\_Dead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Speaker_for_the_Dead)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/2 "2008-11-14T02:36:16Z")
This is exciting, if it isn’t just over-optimistic doctors looking for attention.
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### Author:  [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/3 "2008-11-14T02:36:24Z")
We’ll see how it pans out.
I’ve seen too many failures in the war on HIV to get overly excited by this. Color me cautiously, mildly hopeful. But no more than that.
Especially given HIV’s ability to disappear from standard tests for its presence in the body, getting everyone excited that they’ve found a ‘cure’. Only to have it pop up again later. Often with a vengeance.
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### Author:  [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/4 "2008-11-14T02:57:06Z")
> [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](#):
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> Especially given HIV’s ability to disappear from standard tests for its presence in the body, getting everyone excited that they’ve found a ‘cure’. Only to have it pop up again later. Often with a vengeance.
Yeah, this is one of the reasons that I always want to pick Magic Johnson in the Dead Pools. There’s just no way that whatever he’s done is the, ahem, magic cure.
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### Author:  [@pbbth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pbbth)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/5 "2008-11-14T03:16:47Z")
Oooh, that makes today double exciting for me! They believe they have found a cure for Type 1 diabetes and since my boyfriend has Type 1 he is looking to possibly enroll in clinical trials to see if their cure is effective. The cure appears to have worked perfectly in pigs and there is a lot of hope that it will work in people too. I don’t personally know anyone with HIV but I know it has been a blight on humanity for many years now and a cure would be nothing but wonderful so a cure for HIV and a cure for diabetes both apparently coming about at the same time is almost magical to me!
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### Author:  [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/6 "2008-11-14T10:26:08Z")
Definitely is exciting, but as others have said it’s sort of “HIV breakthrough 4324” and we’re still no closer to a cure, so won’t be dumping the condoms quite yet.
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### Author:  [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/7 "2008-11-14T11:43:45Z")
> [@Tuckerfan](#):
>
> [Cells target HIV.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7716449.stm)[Bone marrow transplant appears to cure HIV.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/7726118.stm)About 20 years ago, I remember seeing a news story about a patient with HIV who was given a bone marrow transplant, while the patient died (because of the disease which necessitated the transplant, **not** because of HIV) and the tests they ran on the patient after he/she had died revealed **no** signs of HIV anywhere in their body. The doctors then were saying, “This is not a cure.” (The reporter failed to ask _why_, despite my screaming at the TV for them to ask the question.) Interesting that this seems to have happened again.
Well, my take on why it wouldnt be considered a c ure is the sheer insanity of trying to crossmatch and arrange marrow transplants for all HIV + people.
What they probably consider a cure is a generic something [or group of somethings] that can be given to everybody. There are fairly serious risks to marrow transplant.
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### Author:  [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/8 "2008-11-14T20:06:56Z")
> [@aruvqan](#):
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> Well, my take on why it wouldnt be considered a cure is the sheer insanity of trying to crossmatch and arrange marrow transplants for all HIV + people.
Yeah, I can see that as a problem, but for those few people that it could potentially cure (can’t say for certain that it would, of course, AFAIK there were no follow up studies) it’d be a lifesaver.
> [@](#):
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> What they probably consider a cure is a generic something [or group of somethings] that can be given to everybody. There are fairly serious risks to marrow transplant.
There are fairly serious risks to being HIV+, too. (Of course, undergoing a bone marrow transplant might well make those _worse_.)
[Here’s another story on a potential new treatment.](http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn16035)
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> A drug extracted from a plant used in Chinese medicine has helped immune cells fight HIV and raises the possibility of slowing the ageing process in other parts of our bodies.
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> The method hinges upon telomeres - caps of repetitive DNA found at the ends of chromosomes. These get shorter as cells age and are thought to affect the cell’s lifespan.
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> The caps can be rebuilt with an enzyme called telomerase, and some people have suggested it might be possible to extend human life by boosting telomerase production - though this has never been tested.
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> Now Rita Effros at the University of California in Los Angeles has used a drug that boosts telomerase to enhance the immune response to viruses.
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### Author:  [@Litoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Litoris)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/9 "2008-11-14T20:26:19Z")
> [@aruvqan](#):
>
> Well, my take on why it wouldnt be considered a c ure is the sheer insanity of trying to crossmatch and arrange marrow transplants for all HIV + people.
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> What they probably consider a cure is a generic something [or group of somethings] that can be given to everybody. There are fairly serious risks to marrow transplant.
Except that, based on the article I read (sorry, no link currently) the immunity seems to be some kind of genetic mutation. If they could just figure out how to tweak that one gene in everyone – immunization ensues\*\*.
\*\*Provided, of course there are no long-term genetic mutational problems, of course.
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### Author:  [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bam_Boo_Gut)
#### Post date: [November 14, 2008, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/10 "2008-11-14T23:46:29Z")
Well, this is it Litoris - the mutation of the goddam thing. I’ll always be excited and hopeful about any breakthrough but obviously it’s still going to be a long road and chances are an expensive one. Oh I hate HIV/AIDS with a vengeance.
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### Author:  [@Litoris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Litoris)
#### Post date: [November 15, 2008, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/11 "2008-11-15T01:53:07Z")
> [@Bam\_Boo\_Gut](#):
>
> Well, this is it Litoris - the mutation of the goddam thing. I’ll always be excited and hopeful about any breakthrough but obviously it’s still going to be a long road and chances are an expensive one. Oh I hate HIV/AIDS with a vengeance.
Agreed on all points. I think the thing that makes me so anxious for a cure/immunisation/good treatment is the fucking stigma. Do we look at people with Hepatitis and assume they got it from sharing needles or unprotected sex? No. Why do we, knowing better, assume so much about HIV/AIDS? Ugh. Personally, I am hoping for a simple, cheap solution – but will be happy even if it turns out to be a hard, expensive one if we can give it to everyone.
I will continue to keep my fingers crossed that they figure something out that works. Even if this turns out to be a bust – it is at least a ray of hope.
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### Author:  [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)
#### Post date: [November 15, 2008, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/12 "2008-11-15T06:05:13Z")
> [@](#):
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> Do we look at people with Hepatitis and assume they got it from sharing needles or unprotected sex? No.
Actually, an overwhelming “yes” based on my experience with clients and family members with Hepatitis C, all of whom acquired it though transfusions prior to 1992 and all of whom were treated as lying drug addicts by many professionals, which I witnessed at various times ranging from 1994 through about two months ago.
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### Author:  [@Szlater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Szlater)
#### Post date: [November 15, 2008, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-hiv-treatment-news/472651/13 "2008-11-15T06:14:00Z")
> [@Litoris](#):
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> Personally, I am hoping for a simple, cheap solution – but will be happy even if it turns out to be a hard, expensive one if we can give it to everyone. .
A cheap and simple solution is the only hope for the developing world. They have trouble enough getting the basic childhood vaccines, what with the problems with refrigeration and storage, let alone bone marrow transplants and engineered cells.
HIV won’t be beaten until we can offer those people some hope.