Man cured of HIV?!

[Steve]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4432564.stm

Caution over HIV 'cure' claims

Andrew Stimpson (pic: courtesy of News of the World/Mail on Sunday)
Andrew Stimpson said he was one of the luckiest people alive

See the interview
Doctors say they want to investigate the case of a British man with HIV who apparently became clear of the virus.

Scotsman Andrew Stimpson, 25 was diagnosed HIV-positive in 2002 but was found to be negative in October 2003.

Mr Stimpson, from London, said he was "one of the luckiest people alive".

Chelsea and Westminster Healthcare NHS Trust confirmed the tests were accurate but were unable to confirm Mr Stimpson's cure because he had declined to undergo further tests.

A statement from the trust said: "This is a rare and complex case. When we became aware of Mr Stimpson's HIV negative test results we offered him further tests to help us investigate and find an explanation for the different results.


I think I'm one of the luckiest people alive
Andrew Stimpson

Bacteria modified to fight HIV

"So far Mr Stimpson has declined this offer."

A trust spokeswoman added: "We urge him, for the sake of himself and the HIV community, to come in and get tested.

"If he doesn't feel that he can come to Chelsea and Westminster then he should please go to another HIV specialist."

'Miracle'

There have been anecdotal accounts before from Africa of people shaking off the HIV virus.

Mr Stimpson, who is originally from Largs in Ayrshire, said: "There are 34.9 million people with HIV globally and I am just one person who managed to control it, to survive from it and to get rid of it from my body.

"For me that is unbelievable - it is a miracle. I think I'm one of the luckiest people alive."

Mr Stimpson told the News of the World and Mail on Sunday that he became depressed and suicidal after being told he was HIV-positive but remained well and did not require medication.

Further tests

Some 14 months later he was offered another test by doctors, which came back negative.

He sought compensation but has apparently been told there is no case to answer because there was no fault with the testing procedure.

He has told the papers he would do anything he could to help find a cure.

Deborah Jack, chief executive of the National Aids Trust, said: "This appears to be a highly unusual case and without further tests it is impossible to draw any conclusions for people living with HIV.

"The virus is extremely complex and there are many unknowns about how it operates and how people's bodies react to it.

"Therefore, if this case were able to shed further light, it could be extremely valuable for research into treatments or a cure."

Vaccine clue

Aids expert Dr Patrick Dixon, from international Aids group Acet, said the case was "very, very unusual".

"I've come across many anecdotal reports of this kind of thing happening in Africa, some quite recently, but it's difficult to verify them," he told BBC News 24.

"You have to be rock-solid sure that both samples came from the same person, no mix-up in the laboratory, no mistakes in the testing, etc.

"This is the first well-documented case."

He said the case was important because "inside his immune system is perhaps a key that could allow us to develop some kind of vaccine".

if he thought about others for one minute, then he might be able to help the 35m people that have HIV.

[-live-wire-]

I say we waste him and donate his body to science...

[*trained]

I agree. Or maybe pay the guy a large sum of money to let them do tests. I mean wow, i'd do anything I could to help get a cure.

[-Tigger-]

i think he should be forced to be tested, no offence and screw human rights, but for one of the largest spreading diseases anything should be done to help fight it..

just my view

but very very good news that someone has cured themselves, from what is apparently, a uncureable disease.

[Scott]

I'm with you guys.. although it would be scary being tested on and bugged all the time you know?

I think it has something to do with eveloution.. thoughts?

[Steve]

iirc there is something related to people of 'western' origin, whereby they have a slightly different gene that is more resiliant to the HIV virus or something similar, which can indeed make this possible. but without research on an extremely rare case like this, then nothing is likely to happen.

of course there is the possibility that this guy did not have HIV in the first place (mix ups etc like mentioned). but for him to try to get compensation from this makes me sick, its the first thing that goes through people's minds. and if he refuses testing, then he's just making the situation non-resolvable either way.

[Terry]

interesting stuff.. would make history if they could actually find a cure

[Mauser 98K]

there was a case a while back where the accidently found that malaria could cure aids.
the malaria it atacked the aids cells and killed them.
i think it was in africa at a field hospitol tent, they had a few dieing from aids and 1 of them contracted malaria and a week went by and they found that his t cell count was coming back up.
they found that the malaria virus was attacking the aids virus, the only drawback of the descovery was that the guy died 2 days later of malaria.

[Lucky]

he should get tested very quickly

[Hellfighter]

sorry to say i don't think he had it to start with, when it was postive they should have retested him again. bit the test got mix-up, so some time later when he got tested again it was negative.

it happen test get mix-up when a person do the test they may have writen it down on some other person test paper work.

[BADDOG]

Fascinating stuff Steve and let's hope this may lead to a break through of some kind.


Warm Regards

[Lakie]

i heard about this,

the test were definately correct chief, when the negative tests cam back, he started prodding around for compensation so his original smaples were restested and the DNA matched as well as the HIV being present..

And ill just clarify this, he was expressing want of compensation when the assumption was that they screwed up the original tests and he believed that he was living with the disease for years that he never had, once the tests were conclusively proved to be "self-curing" he no longer wanted to seek compensation.

There have been other suspected self-curing cases in recent history in europe as well as africa, but they could never be definately verified because the original sample no longer existed.

They may have enough to find what they need with the samples of stuff they already have gotton as a normal part of hospitalization. Thats what i hope anyway, then the whole problem is solved, although to be fair to the guy give him some time to think about it......

[Hellfighter]

ok np
maybe it was something he taken that cure him of it food, drink, a cold virus something made his body fight it off and he was cure of it totally or it maybe a [long shot] act of god got him heal of it.

[Rampage.]

probably just evoloution, or something like that... or his diet was right and it helped it fight it off, but yea, he should allow them to study him, plus you could make some nice money off that if you wanted to

[Lakie]

Theres a book and a movie deal in it before he even starts...

[BADDOG]

Originally posted by BB/Mike*MFA*
Theres a book and a movie deal in it before he even starts...

You know your absolutely right there Mike.....he could make a small fortune from this!

Warm Regards