Belfast Telegraph : reported that Five HIV patients left 'virus-free' with no need for daily drugs in early vaccine trials

A new vaccine-based treatment for HIV has succeeded in suppressing the virus in five patients, raising hopes further research could help prevent Aids without the need for daily drugs. Researchers combined two innovative HIV vaccines with a drug usually used to treat cancer in the trial, conducted over three years at the IrsiCaixa Aids Research Institute in Barcelona. Then 15 of the participants received a booster dose of one of the vaccines and a cancer drug called romidepsin, which has been shown to 'flush out' the HIV virus. More than 100,000 people are living with HIV in the UK, according to the Terrence Higgins Trust. Lead scientist Beatriz Mothe said her team was "on the right path" to developing a treatment which could offer an alternative to daily antiretroviral medication (ART).

Five HIV patients are 'virus free' and no longer infectious after two doses of new vaccine

By doing so, the drugs help reduce a patient's viral load to undetectable levels meaning they are no longer infectious. That means the level of HIV in the blood is so low it can't be picked up by tests used to measure HIV viral load. But, it does mean HIV is unable to damage a patient's immune system and that they cannot pass on the virus. Most HIV patients are prescribed antiretroviral therapy (ART) to stop the virus reproducing in the body. The participants are no longer infectious and don't need to take daily medication to keep the virus at bay.

Five HIV patients left 'virus-free' with no need for daily drugs in early vaccine trials

A new vaccine-based treatment for HIV has succeeded in suppressing the virus in five patients, raising hopes further research could help prevent Aids without the need for daily drugs. Researchers combined two innovative HIV vaccines with a drug usually used to treat cancer in the trial, conducted over three years at the IrsiCaixa Aids Research Institute in Barcelona. More than 100,000 people are living with HIV in the UK, according to the Terrence Higgins Trust. Around 18 million people – half of all those living with HIV around the world – take ART to slow the progression of the infection, according to the UN. Lead scientist Beatriz Mothe said her team was "on the right path" to developing a treatment which could offer an alternative to daily antiretroviral medication (ART).


collected by :Lucy William
To follow all the new news about

VIRUSES and INFECTIONS