A new report published in the journal PLoS Pathogens reveals that rapid treatment for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, may translate into a "functional cure" among patients who are diagnosed early.
A functional cure is a term used to describe the point where a virus is reduced to such low levels that, even though it is still detectable, is kept in check despite the absence of continuing treatment.
Researchers in France monitored 14 patients who were being treated very quickly after an HIV diagnosis but then stopped treatment and found that even after seven years of not receiving any kind of therapy, the patients displayed no signs that the virus rebounded.
The release of this research study comes just after a report earlier in the month that a baby from Mississippi was cured from HIV after being treated very early.
"Early treatment in these patients may have limited the establishment of viral reservoirs, the extent of viral mutations, and preserved immune responses. A combination of those may contribute to control infection in post-treatment controllers," said Christine Rouzioux, a professor at Necker Hospital and University Paris Descartes as well as a member of the team who first discovered HIV 30 years ago.
"The shrinking of viral reservoirs...closely matches the definition of 'functional' cure."
And HIV researcher at the Institut Pasteur in Paris, Asier Saez-Cirion, said that although many people who are infected with HIV won't be able to control the infection, the findings of this study show that early intervention could mean success for some.
"[This data] and the Mississippi study strongly support early treatment initiation and may hold important clues for the development of a strategy to cure HIV or at least induce a long-term control without the need of antiretroviral treatment," he said.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
