Question
When will there be a cure for HIV?
18 September 2014. Related: All topics, Cure, Living with HIV long-term.
Hello,
Thanks for your answer to my previous question.
I have managed to convince my girlfriend who tested HIV positive not to commit suicide. I told her to take medications for the next few years.
I told her that i was convinced that there would be a cure in the next few years. Are my hopes justified?
In your opinion how long do you think it would take to find a cure if any?
What websites give such information?
Answer
Learning that you have HIV can be tough. But while coming to term with this it should help to know that current treatment means that most people can lead long, normal, lives.
We can do the same things we did in life before we had HIV. This includes sport, work, getting married and having children. Some people even say that finding out they were HIV positive meant that they valued life more than they did before.
Some people make changes in their lives for the better, in ways they might not have done otherwise. Life may be slightly more complicated with HIV, but access to good treatment allows all these things.
When someone is first diagnosed they may not have information, or they may not believe it. This is why access to accurate information is so important.
As for a cure, I’m sure it will come. In the last five years there has been a dramatic increase in this research. Scientists are making great progress in working on all the sections of this very complex problem.
Science has a way of solving most problems. If not now, then it will happen in the future. But putting a timeline on when is tough. Many of the leading scientists are cautious on this. Many suggest at least ten years is reasonable but an unexpected breakthough could change this.
One part of the challenge for HIV is that the virus becomes part of the genetic material (DNA) of immune cells. Some of these cells, once infected, rest or sleep for many years. Currently HIV drugs only work in cells that are active or awake, but research is looking at ways of targeting those sleeping cells.
This article describes new approaches to cure research:
https://i-base.info/guides/art-in-pictures/the-hiv-cure-puzzle
Even if a cure is a long way off it is not something that I worry about. It will come, and treatment will keep me healthy and alive until then. Following research is a good was to keep informed – both for newer treatments and for research into vaccines and ‘a cure’.
Most HIV organisations have newsletters that report on research from medical conferences. If you email me with which country you live in I can suggest something that may be useful.
Note: The answer was updated in September 2014 from a question asked in August 2007.
The risk depends on whether the person is HIV-positive.
One of the best site with information about HIV, sex and risk from a your persons perspective is:
http://www.avert.org/
Question on teenage issues for young people are at this link:
http://www.avert.org/teens.htm
The links in the menu on the left of the AVERT website includes other related subjects that you may find helpful.
I am a male , and am just interested, if a guy just touches ur anal inside a little bit maybe 3-5 seconds with his penis, what are the odds for u to get aids?
Hello,
Thank you for your question.
It is safe to take ARVs with a CD4 count of 500. In the USA the new guidelines state that medication should be started between 500 and 350, but also that some of the experts wanted to recommend treatment above 500 too. In the rest of the world the recommendations are currently to start medication at 350. Starting HIV medication at a higher CD4 count should be fine if this is what you decide to do.
There are also reasons to consider treatment above 350 if you have some other medical complications, or if you want to reduce your viral load to reduce the risk of infection to your partners, for example if a condom breaks.
A new study called START is looking at the risks and benefits of earlier treatment, if this is something you are interested in.
http://i-base.info/home/start-study/
For more information about starting treatment please follow this link to the i-Base ‘Introduction to Combination Therapy’ guide.
Is it safe for me to take ARVs while I have a CD4 count of 500 .
You understandably sound quite upset. Please don’t be angry at yourself or your partner as it won’t help anyone. The most important thing is your health. Going for a HIV test is a positive first step.
If you are found to be HIV positive, when to start treatment is something you will have to discuss with your doctor. It usually depends on the results of a CD4 count test which looks at the state of your immune system. For more information please call our Treatment Information Phoneline (Mon-Wed 12-4pm) on 0808 800 6013
I suspect my partner may be HIV positive. I have decided to go for a test to confirm my own status. I have been faithful and we have for the most part practiced sex. Despite this,I am still nervous about what to expect and also angry at the possibility that he may have known his status and still chosen to expose me to the risk. On the other hand, I blame myself for not being responsible and insisting on testing prior to engaging in sex and continuing to test regularly after that. What first steps to treatment can I take if I am diagnosed positive?
It is difficult to say when there will be a cure for HIV. Being HIV positive doesn’t mean you can’t have a relationship. I understand how hard it is to tell someone about your status but if they care about you they will love you no matter what. Remember, talking about your status to a loved one is a process not an event. You first need to sensitise them about what HIV is, how it can be transmitted and what it means to live with someone who is HIV positive. That way they will understand the risks and won’t run away when you decide to tell them you are HIV positive.
If you are HIV positive you can travel to almost all the countries in the world. There are very few countries which still have travel restrictions. You should check with the embassy before you decide to travel.
Will there be cure for HIV? I don’t have a relationship at the moment because if I tell anyone my status they will run away from me. Can I travel out of the country if I am positive?
They can be different, depending on the person and the medications. In many cases they do not appear at all. There is some very detailed information on side effects in the i-Base booklet Avoiding and managing side effects. You can read it online or download it from this link.
What are the side effects of ARV?