Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

London Man Gives Doctors Hope After Becoming Second Man In The World To Be 'Cured' Of HIV

London Man Gives Doctors Hope After Becoming Second Man In The World To Be 'Cured' Of HIV
JohnnyGreig / Getty Images

A London man has recently become the second previously HIV-positive patient to show no trace of the virus after receiving a bone marrow transplant from an HIV-resistant donor. Known as "the London patient," the man has, understandably, chosen to remain anonymous.


Dr. Ravindra Gupta, professor and HIV biologist co-led a team of doctors and scientists in the London patient's treatment. Reuters reports that he described his patient as "functionally cured" and "in remission," but said "It is still too early to say he's cured."

Gupta treated the man while he was with University College London, and has since moved on to work at Cambridge University. The patient had reportedly contracted HIV in 2003 and was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma, a form of blood cancer, in 2012.

The bone marrow stem cell transplant was administered to treat the patient's cancer; the clearing of HIV from his system was not doctors' main motivation, though they knew it could be a possibility.

The bone marrow donor had a genetic mutation called "CCR5 delta 32" that is known to cause resistance to the HIV virus.

American man Timothy Ray Brown was the first patient to become HIV-free after infection, and was then known as "the Berlin patient," as he was living in Berlin at the time.

Brown was suffering from Leukemia when he was given bone marrow transplants from two different donors, one of whom had the same mutation and was resistant to HIV.

Brown has since moved back to the United States and is still HIV-free, according to HIV experts.

Social media reaction to the news was largely hopeful and congratulatory.





Jacqueline Cromeans/Facebook


Tiffany Breezee/Facebook


Ashley Ives/Facebook

There were those who couldn't understand why this news wasn't getting more attention.


Some people also recalled loved ones who lost their battle with the virus.


Page Kaouhu/Facebook


John Howard/Facebook


Elle Woodhouse LaVielle/Facebook

International AIDS Society president Anton Pozniak said:

"Although this is not a viable large-scale strategy for a cure, it does represent a critical moment. The hope is that this will eventually lead to a safe, cost-effective and easy strategy...using gene technology or antibody techniques."

Professor Gupta's team are exploring the possibilities opened up by the London patient's treatment.

Gupta said of the prospects:

"We need to understand if we could knock out this (CCR5) receptor in people with HIV, which may be possible with gene therapy."

AIDS and HIV experts the world over are hopeful that this discovery could eventually lead to a cure, and are actively working to make that a reality.

More from News

Screenshots from @sarahtheseven's TikTok video
@sarahtheseven/TikTok

TikToker Speaks Out After Doctor Refused To Set Her Broken Arm Because She Was Crying

Many of us have negative relationships with the healthcare system, going to doctor's appointments, or asking for medical help at all—and unfortunately, that's for good reason.

Too often patients are subjected to medical bias, gaslighting, and neglect, and it can often lead to poor medical attention, inaccurate diagnoses, and even unnecessary medications and procedures. And the main victims of these occurrences are often women and people of color.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @culinaryem's TikTok video
@culinaryem/TikTok

Wedding Caterer Goes Viral For Her Reaction To Discovering Groom Was Having An Affair

It's easy to say that we would intervene if we realized that someone was cheating, but would we actually follow through when it happened?

That was the question chef, caterer, and TikToker @culinaryem faced when she planned to cater a wedding for a "lovely couple" she nicknamed "Sweet" (the bride) and "Dirtbag" (the groom).

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @dani_b_unfiltered's TikTok video
@dani_b_unfiltered/TikTok

Woman Hilariously Panics After She Accidentally Child-Locks Her Dinner In The Oven

We've all been "hangry" before and know how important that Snickers bar can be.

Or in TikToker @dani_b_unfiltered's case, it was a potato that was baking in the oven.

Keep ReadingShow less
Rob McElhenney
Gilbert Flores/ Variety/Getty Images

Rob McElhenney Just Shared A Video Explaining His 'Kinda Douchey' Decision To Legally Change His Name

What's in a name? A lot, apparently.

To be fair, a name represents a lot of things: a person's identity, the family they originate from, and possibly even some of the cultural and historical background of that family.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards aka Mr. Fantastic
Disney/Marvel Studios

Pedro Pascal Adjusts Accent

Pedro Pascal was advised to tone down the Mid-Atlantic accent for his upcoming role as the stretchy Mister Fantastic/Reed Richards in Fantastic Four: First Steps.

In a video interview with Vanity Fair, he reflected on his past and current work and talked about working with a dialect coach for the Marvel movie, which is set to premiere on July 25th.

Keep ReadingShow less