An HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) positive woman in the USA had another HIV test after a newly developed blood transfusion method during her treatment for leukemia; test came back negative.
The patient is believed to be the first woman in the world to completely recover from this virus.
The HIV tests of a woman with leukemia, who received a stem cell transplant from a person who has developed a natural immunity to the virus that causes AIDS, have been negative for 14 months.
Experts say this method of transplantation uses umbilical cord blood and warns that it is not a suitable treatment for many people with HIV.
However, it was stated that the method described at a medical conference in Denver on Tuesday was applied for the first time for the permanent treatment of HIV and it is a critical development for the next steps.
The practice is part of a US study on whether blood transfusions for people with long-term cancer can also be applied to HIV-positive people. A type of genetically mutated blood sample was selected and transplanted into the patient who had developed innate immunity to HIV. Scientists think that this way, HIV-positives will create natural resistance and fight the virus.
In the latest study, umbilical cord blood given to a female patient can be transferred without much common ground between the donor and the recipient.
Sharon Lewin, elected chair of the International AIDS Community, says this type of transplant may not be available for every HIV patient.
However, he still states that this is an important development and “From now on, gene therapy has been developed further and it is a strategy that can be applied for HIV, revealing that HIV can be cured”.
The findings of the study have not yet been published in detail in a medical journal. For this reason, the available data are limited.