First ever 'cure' for HIV could have been discovered

Thanks to a new study, a British man might be the first person to be completely cured of the HIV virus.

Researchers from five different universities, including Cambridge, Oxford, and three in London have worked together to develop a potential cure that can detect the virus in it’s dormant state.

50 people have been tested in the study, and one of the test subjects, a 44 year old man, is the first to show no sign of the disease at all. He is still being tested, but the overall signs so far show a full elimination of the HIV virus from his bloodstream.

The new tests operate in two stages. The first stage identifies the active HIV cells within the body, whilst the second activates any dormant virus cells so the immune system is able to deal with them.

As with any drug test, the results are not final and other people testing the drug might react differently but it’s definitely a big step in the right direction for those living with HIV.

While HIV in the modern age is mostly manageable, for many years it was deemed untreatable and a certain cure is yet to be found. During its original outbreak in the 80s, contracting the virus essentially meant there was no way back to full health. The disease slowly breaks down the human immune system, eventually progressing into the AIDS virus. Once a person contracts the AIDS virus after HIV, the survival rate is 9 to 11 years. Thanks to modern medicine and a better knowledge of how the HIV virus works, many people are able to manage the disease far better than before - but hopefully these new tests could change this.

Those interested in the full story and can read it on The Times.