Question
How long can I live if I’m taking HIV treatment (ART)?
15 January 2018. Related: All topics, Life expectancy, Living with HIV long-term.
Can HIV kill when you have an undetectable viral load? I’m doing well on medication and how long can i live to the cure? Lastly, why cant I stop thinking about my HIV status – first thing in the morning and also just before I fall asleep?
Polio have been eradicated but why cant scientists do the same for HIV?
Answer
The quick answer is that with modern HIV drugs (called ART) your life expectancy is likely to be similar to if you were HIV negative. The earlier someone is diagnosed and start ART, the quicker any damage from HIV can be reversed.
For most people, HIV is easy to treat and easy to manage. ART can give you a normal life expectancy and an excellent quality of life.
Hw long anyone will live depends on things you can change (smoking, exercise, medication) and thing you can’t (genetics and luck). A study in Denmark (2005) estimated that the survival is more than 35 years for a young person diagnosed with HIV infection and another study in Canada (2003) report that in the US, life expectancy at age 20 years was an additional 58.3 years.
As long as your CD4 count stays above 200 cells/mm3, the risk of most HIV complications is pretty low. At higher CD4 levels – above 350, or 500, or 700 – the risk becomes lower still. Although some health problems are slightly higher in HIV positive people compared to HIV negative people, these risks are also often reduced by ART.
If you continue to take your medication as prescribed and do not miss or taking doses late, then the risk of HIV health problems in the future s very low. However, just as HIV negative people become ill, lifestyle changes to reduce these risks are important if you are HIV positive. For example, keeping mentally and physically active, eating a balanced diet, resting well, not smoking etc).
Having HIV might not always be easy though. The shock of being diagnosed sometimes takes a long time to come to terms with and at the moment you are still working on this. Already, I am sure you feel better than when you were first diagnosed and this will continue to become easier every year.
Most people worry about the impact of HIV on their life. This could bewhy you think about your HIV status on a daily basis. If this continues to be difficult perhaps get in touch with a local support group or ask about counselling. Talking about your HIV status can help you to deal with it and also through group support you can share experiences and also learn from one another. You do not have to deal with it in isolation.
Finally, you asked about research into a cure. HIV is very complex in a way that is different to polio. Although currently there is no vaccine or cure, there is a lot of ongoing research.
HIV treatment is one of the successes of modern medicine. The breadth and expertise in scientific advances has not only developed 30 medications in five drug classes but this research has contributed to many other areas of medicine.
Even though curing HIV is difficult, there are lots of reasons to be optimistic.
This question was updated in January 2018 from an original answer posted in November 2011. (See: Question 10 at this link for more information).
Hi Eugene, please see:
http://i-base.info/qa/factsheets/hiv-transmission-and-testing
pls I had an unprotected sex and I have been having this peperish pains in my skine and my girl friend told me she is negative. and I have gone to test and result says negative what I do
Hi Maryhelen,thanks for sharing your story and you how overcame HIV and took charge of your life. The only other small comment I have is that you may still yet be surprised as ART is now good enough that many people are likely to die of old-age – with HIV having very little role in this. Long may your complex happiness continue :)
I’ve was diagnosed 1996, which means 20 yrs for me. I found out one month, after I turned 18. My thought was I would die, by age 30.At first death was the only though on my mind. The meds back then, caused horrible side effects. I watched how sick, they were making my partner. I held off taking the drug. To this day I feel that starting med is a personal decision.You must feel trust and build a relationship with your doctor. Please commit to taking the meds.Starting and stopping meds unsupervised has bad consequence. The thought of dying is scary, no matter what the cause. The emotional stages we go through when we find out run the gamut. For me sadness and fear were the first two. Then i became pissed and began to isolated myself.Now I loved and think deeper. Most of all i learned to appreciate life and those in my life. At 29 I gave birth to a negative baby girl.instead of dieing. I’ve learned letting go of those who drag me down is easier than holding on. With this diagnosis we have to look at life, even the stuff most of us want to close are eyes to. Death is a natural part of life. In way I am lucky to know what i am going to die from. An HIV diagnosis is permission to live life to it fullest. Enjoy all the niceties of life. Then learn from the hard and painful. I did I now have strength and for the most part happines. Not all stories have to be fairy tales, with a happy ending. Which doesn’t mean its not one hell of a story.
Hi Ndivhuwo, although dealing with HIV can be difficult – especially at first – it does get easier. Over time you will probably think less about HIV until one day you realise you haven’t thought about it at all. Are you on treatment yet? Also, do you know other HIV positive people you can talk to about this. Hearing about other people’s experience can also help.
how do I leave a normal life without think of the hiv status wen m positive
Hi Christin, being on effective ART mean you can plan to live a similarly long life as before you were diagnosed. HIV treatment can keep you well until you retire. Effective treatment also reduces the risk to your boyfriend, even if you are not using condoms. You might find the PARTNER study results interesting:
http://i-base.info/qa-on-the-partner-study
Very few countries still have entry restrictions based on HIV status. Planning on treatment might be a bit more complicated but there are ways to overcome most probels and HIV treatment is available in every country.
I have been tested positive for a year 3 months now. And i have started my treatment for about 9 months. My boyfriend is negative and supportive and caring of me,but sometimes i get so worried that i might have complications and die early because of the virus. My boyfriend is ready to take the risk and marry me like that. How can we live a normal life,without him getting infected. And he is planning on relocating to abroad, will i be accepted as a positive person to travel and live in another country? ?? Please help am so scared of losing him. Cause i love him deeply n he does too.
HIV is a difficult virus to catch so you are likely to be okay. If your partner has an undetectable viral load because he is on treatment, this makes it even more difficult to transmit HIV. If he is not on treatment, then best to use a condom until then.
my bf told me that he is hiv,and we had unprotected sex.am scared to get tested.but i did not get any symptoms pls help.