7th Person in History Possibly Cured From HIV After Stem Cell Transplant for Acute Myeloid Leukemia

A 60-year-old German man reportedly became the seventh person in history to be cured of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) after receiving a stem cell transplant for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) in 2015. He now joins a small group of only seven people who have recovered from this deadly virus in the more than 40 years since the AIDS epidemic began.

Stem Cell Transplant Leads to Remarkable HIV Remission in AML Patient

Doctors treated the anonymous German man for AML with a stem cell transplant in October 2015. After the medical procedure he reportedly stopped taking his antiretroviral drugs in September 2018. Doctors prescribe antiretrovirals (ARVs) to manage and treat HIV infection by inhibiting the virus’s replication in the body. Essentially, they reduce viral loads, improve immune function, and prevent the progression of the disease. Currently, the patient is in remission and shows no detectable HIV in his body, even after multiple ultra-sensitive tests. As he stated, “A healthy person has many wishes, a sick person only one.” His statement serves as a powerful reminder of the impact of medical advancements and the hope they offer to the other 40 million people across the globe battling with this condition. 

The man is referred to as the “next Berlin Patient,” drawing parallels to the famous case of Timothy Ray Brown, the first person ever cured of HIV. This scientific milestone marks the first instance of an HIV cure involving a stem cell donor with a single CCR5-delta32 mutation, rather than a double mutation. In most cases of HIV cures following stem cell transplants, donors have two copies of a genetic mutation that makes them essentially immune to HIV. However, in this case, both donors had only one copy of the mutation, which means they could acquire HIV, but the virus would progress slowly without antiretroviral treatment.

President of the International AIDS Society, AIDS 2024 International Co-Chair and Director of the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity at the University of Melbourne in Australia, Sharon Lewin, emphasized, “The next Berlin Patient’s experience suggests that we can broaden the donor pool for these kinds of cases, although stem cell transplantation is only used in people who have another illness, such as leukemia.” Moreover, this advancement portrays impressive innovation in HIV research making it more accessible to patients worldwide.

HIV Remission Case Slated for Presentation at the 25th International AIDS Conference 

Investigators believe the case offers crucial lessons for HIV cure research. Therefore, Dr. Christian Gaebler, a Berlin-based Charité-Universitätsmedizin physician-scientist, will present it. He will share his findings at the 25th International AIDS Conference in Munich from July 22nd to the 26th. Dr Gaebler expressed, “The longer we see these HIV remissions without any HIV therapy, the more confidence we can get that we’re probably seeing a case where we really have eradicated all competent HIV.” Insights from Dr. Gaebler will contribute to current HIV cure research and will showcase therapeutic strategies to transform the landscape of treatment.

The conference will have thousands of researchers, clinicians, and advocates in attendance. Furthermore, it will feature a range of sessions covering approaches needed to address the HIV epidemic effectively. 

Limitations and Potential Promises of Stem Cell Transplants for HIV Cure 

While the results are encouraging, experts are wary of setting overly high expectations, as this treatment will probably be available to only a small number of people. Each patient who showed remission had not only contracted HIV but also developed blood cancer, which made a stem cell transplant necessary. Because stem cell transplants are very toxic and come with serious risks, experts believe it would be unethical to use them just for HIV treatment, except when treating other serious conditions like blood cancer. 

A stem cell transplant offers the potential to cure HIV by first using chemotherapy and sometimes radiation to eliminate the patient’s cancer-ridden immune system, and then replacing it with a healthy immune system from a donor. Leading HIV cure researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Steven Deeks, expressed, “There are several testable theories, so I am optimistic we will learn something here that could shape the next generation of cure studies.”

As researchers continue refining these approaches, they may uncover new pathways to make treatments more accessible and effective. This progress will bring us closer to a world where HIV is no longer as daunting of a challenge.

Author

Denisse Sandoval