Hooray for Stem Cells 2

[Nirvana]

LINK

Stem Cell Transplant Cures HIV In 'Berlin Patient'

On the heels of World AIDS Day comes a stunning medical breakthrough: Doctors believe an HIV-positive man who underwent a stem cell transplant has been cured as a result of the procedure.

Timothy Ray Brown, also known as the "Berlin Patient," received the transplant in 2007 as part of a lengthy treatment course for leukemia. His doctors recently published a report in the journal Blood affirming that the results of extensive testing "strongly suggest that cure of HIV infection has been achieved."

Brown's case paves a path for constructing a permanent cure for HIV through genetically-engineered stem cells.

Last week, Time named another AIDS-related discovery to its list of the Top 10 Medical Breakthroughs of 2010. Recent studies show that healthy individuals who take antiretrovirals, medicine commonly prescribed for treating HIV, can reduce their risk of contracting the disease by up to 73 percent.

While these developments by no means prove a cure for the virus has been found, they can certainly provide hope for the more than 33 million people living with HIV worldwide. Alongside such findings, global efforts to combat the epidemic have accelerated as of late, with new initiatives emerging in the Philippines and South Africa this week.

[Lamplighter]

It's an encouraging story.

[TheMercenary]

That really is great. Now if we can just remove any and all restrictions on Stem Cell research and move forward from here more than HIV/AIDS could be studied in greater depth.

[DanaC]

Originally Posted by TheMercenary

That really is great. Now if we can just remove any and all restrictions on Stem Cell research and move forward from here more than HIV/AIDS could be studied in greater depth.

One of those rare issues where we agree :P

[SamIam]

Yeah, Merc's on the side of the angels today.

You feeling OK, Merc?

[xoxoxoBruce]

Another point of view on that Aids Cure.
http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/f...tch/2010-12-15

[Lamplighter]

Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce

Another point of view on that Aids Cure.
http://www.fiercebiotech.com/story/f...tch/2010-12-15

xoB' link is not a discouraging story.
It's just the realities of medical research and stem cell transplants.
It's what patients with kinds of certain leukemia already face today,
and is accepted therapy by insurance providers.

Stem cell transplant is the replacement of damaged bone marrow cells with healthy cells (stem cells).
Stem cells are immature cells produced in the bone marrow that make more
stem cells, red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.
Stem cell transplant is used:
• To treat diseases that damage or destroy the bone marrow, such as lymphoma and leukemia.
• To rescue the bone marrow after it has been destroyed by high doses of radiation and chemotherapy.
Stem cells are usually taken from the person's body before the
radiation or chemotherapy treatmentand then reinfused (autologous transplant).
• Experimentally for gene therapy and the treatment of other diseases, such as diabetes and sickle cell disease.

The success of a stem cell transplant depends on the person's age
and general health condition and whether the donated cells match the body cells.
Serious complications that can occur after a stem cell transplant include
rejection of the new stem cells, destruction of other cells in the person's body
by the new stem cells, or severe, often life-threatening, infection.

The difference for the HIV-resistant gene may be a matter of
propagating a different donor's stem cells in culture,
and such cultures could provide enough cells to treat multiple HIV patients.

Of course millions of HIV patients can not be treated this way,
but as a step towards actual "cures", it is still an encouraging report.

[xoxoxoBruce]

Yes, it was just a reality check for people proclaiming AIDS is dead, without reading past the headlines.