A man in Germany, known as a Dusseldorf patient becomes the third person to be cured of HIV from stem cell transplant treatment. Read to know more.
Stem cell transplant cures a man of HIV
A man in Germany was cured of HIV after undergoing a stem cell transplant intended for curing his leukemia. As per a study published in Nature, the “Dusseldorf Patient” became the third to be cured with the treatment. As per reports, the man was off the anti-retroviral medication suppressing the virus for four years. Additionally, the patient was monitored for over nine years and had not had a relapse in the last four years. However, according to some researchers, the treatment was not successful in other patients.
“This underlines that these approaches are promising and also reproducible, since it does not remain an isolated case,” stated Jurgen Rockstroh. Rockstroh is a professor and head of infectiology at the University Hospital Bonn, Germany. Similar to the “Berlin” and “London” patients, the donor had a rare mutation conferring resistance to the strains of HIV.
Stem cell transplant treatment: More on the success therapy
The Dusseldorf patient was diagnosed with the disease in 2008. “I still remember very well the sentence of my family doctor: ‘Don’t take it so hard. We will experience together that HIV can be cured. Today, I am all the more proud of my worldwide team of doctors who succeeded in curing me of HIV – and at the same time, of course, of leukemia,” stated the patient. Since recovering with the help of stem cell transplant treatment, he is planning to support and fundraise to fight stigmas against HIV.
