Man appears free of HIV after stem cell transplant

[preciousjeni]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

Pneumonia in and of itself is NOT AIDS defining. Pneumonia with fungal types not seen in immunocompetent patients certainly is AIDS defining if the patient already has HIV status. Without a compromised immune system, every human can fight off these pathogens. I don't understand all these conspiracy theories involving medicine. We really do want people to get better, we really don't just prescribe drugs to get the free pens and we don't make up diseases just to keep pharmaceutical companies in business.

Do you happen to know if there's been a study done to test the incidence of fungal pneumonia in non-HIV-positive patients vs. HIV-postitive patients who are not being treated for HIV/AIDS vs. HIV-positive patients who are being treated for HIV/AIDS? I'd be interested in those results.

Anyway, I am VERY skeptical of western medicine though my life has been saved more than once by modern medical advances. I do my best to stay away from doctors and medicine.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by preciousjeni

Do you happen to know if there's been a study done to test the incidence of fungal pneumonia in non-HIV-positive patients vs. HIV-postitive patients who are not being treated for HIV/AIDS vs. HIV-positive patients who are being treated for HIV/AIDS? I'd be interested in those results.

Anyway, I am VERY skeptical of western medicine though my life has been saved more than once by modern medical advances. I do my best to stay away from doctors and medicine.

Yes...they have studied all of this! Deaths from AIDS are actually due to these infections and opportunistic cancers, not due to the virus itself. Treatment for HIV has actually been a huge success. Being diagnosed is no longer a death sentence. Medications are much better and less likely to cause major side effects like pancreatitis. People with HIV now are treated like patients with chronic disease, not patients who are terminal.

As for staying away from doctors and medicine, a dose of preventative medicine goes a long way!

[Senusret I]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

Yes...they have studied all of this! Deaths from AIDS are actually due to these infections and opportunistic cancers, not due to the virus itself. Treatment for HIV has actually been a huge success. Being diagnosed is no longer a death sentence. Medications are much better and less likely to cause major side effects like pancreatitis. People with HIV now are treated like patients with chronic disease, not patients who are terminal.

As for staying away from doctors and medicine, a dose of preventative medicine goes a long way!

This is true, yet very unfortunate. I work for a Ryan White CARE Act funded organization and I can say that people ARE still dying of AIDS out here.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by Senusret I

This is true, yet very unfortunate. I work for a Ryan White CARE Act funded organization and I can say that people ARE still dying of AIDS out here.

Oh, I'm sure there are a lot of people who are still dying. Not everyone has access to these drugs, not everyone will take the drugs and some people still do have severe side effects that make it impossible to take the drugs. Hopefully, we will be able to make these meds accessible to anyone who needs them.

[fantASTic]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

Oh, I'm sure there are a lot of people who are still dying. Not everyone has access to these drugs, not everyone will take the drugs and some people still do have severe side effects that make it impossible to take the drugs. Hopefully, we will be able to make these meds accessible to anyone who needs them.

It's also worth pointing out that different people react differently to the same drugs. You may respond very well and have no problems from the HIV while on retrovirals, while I could show no improvement.

[AOII Angel]

Originally Posted by fantASTic

It's also worth pointing out that different people react differently to the same drugs. You may respond very well and have no problems from the HIV while on retrovirals, while I could show no improvement.

That's very unlikely, however. The vast majority of patients who take these drugs control their HIV viral loads very well.

[fantASTic]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

That's very unlikely, however. The vast majority of patients who take these drugs control their HIV viral loads very well.

While the drugs may overall tend to be very effective, any drug can be a degree of effectiveness based on the patient. Some drug therapies are obviously more pronounced in this effect (steroids for sarcoidosis comes to mind), but it still happens with all drugs. Specifically with AIDS, because many patients take it for such a long time, the virus can develop resistances to the therapies and become significantly less effective.

[AKA_Monet]

Originally Posted by AOII Angel

That's very unlikely, however. The vast majority of patients who take these drugs control their HIV viral loads very well.

While, modern medicine has made great strides especially over the ~20 years of HAART, HIV/AIDS patients do die over time, albeit, at later ages they normally would and possibly something unrelated to their infection... Please let me know if I am wrong...

It is my understanding that they die from total organ failure, at one time. HAART does cause a lipoatrophy as well as left ventricular cardiomyopathy. So that's rough 2-3 vital organs involved: pancreas, heart and liver (and/or kidney).

While we do not see that many people dying from a painful death from full-blown AIDS symptoms, such as the Kaposi's Sarcoma or the Pneumocystis carnii, at rates seen in the mid-1980's, these souls actually do die from shorten lifespan with chronic diseases of cardiovascular aging. And very few odd cancers, like astroglialomas or hepatocarcinomas that normally happens in rodents...

While that does not negate the treatment with HAARTs and they are beneficial for treatments, there does have to be disclosure with these drugs, they are NOT aspirins or Tylenols--they are multi-functional pharmas, protease inhibitors, anti-retrovirucides, etc...

Most lay people really do not get that fact, making it a PART of a public health issue rather than a physician ONLY issue...

How do I know as a former R21 NIH awarded research scientist, hospice caregiving is NOT a joke...

Just trying to help...