Reports of an 18-year-old French teenager’s control and remission of AIDS for 12 years has surprised experts and may offer insights into possible cure for HIV.
Doctors gave her medication after she was born for six weeks. However, tests later showed that she still had high levels of HIV which made doctors increase her dosage. The girl stayed on the treatment till she was six years old. The mother brought back the girl a year later saying she has stopped giving her medications; however, doctors found she had no traces of HIV in her blood anymore.
Researchers think the teen’s case could possibly shed light on the positive effect of early and aggressive treatment which may help people control it without taking lifelong medications, the Persian language weekly ‘Salamat’ reported.
A scientist at the Pasteur Institute in Paris and a co-discoverer of HIV, Francoise Barre-Sinoussi said, “This is an exciting story. This case is clearly additional evidence of the powerful benefits of starting treatment as soon as possible.”
