Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date. I am a 31 year old female living in Turkey. I was diagnosed with AIDS in June 2001. Initial VL[viral load] 743,000, CD4 count 25. Since August 2001 my VL has been under 50 copy/ml. Although I have stopped taking my pills for about 20 days in April this year, but my last VL is still under 50 copy/ml and my last CD4 count is 540.
I have watched a program called 'The Plague Hunters' in National Geographic TV where they talked about a research which found out that there were 3 types of people (as far as contracting HIV is concerned). First group got ill and died, second group were immune, i.e. their cells wouldn't let the virus in, and the third group had the disease and recovered. I have a strong feeling that I have 'recovered' and I am taking the medicine for no reason.Can you help me? Is there a more detailed sort of blood test that can show that it's over? My doctors are great but I can not always trust them about having the latest information. They just want me to take my pills and shut up. I am going to get married next year and I want to have a baby but they wouldn't want to even hear about it and I know that HIV+ women can and do have babies with an appropriate C-section. Anyway..Your answer is very much appreciated.
I am glad that you have had such an excellent response to your medications for HIV. I would strongly encourage you to keep taking your medicines as your doctors have instructed you.
While there may be some variation in the course of HIV disease from person to person, untreated, it remains one of the deadliest viruses known to man. In the 20 years of the epidemic, we have learned very much about the course of HIV disease.
Almost all people, untreated, will have disease progression, leading to sickness and death from HIV disease. It may take a few years, or even a decade or more, but the course of disease is pretty much the same for 98% of people infected with HIV. There is a very small number of people who, up to 20 years after infection, remain healthy, with normal T cell counts. This small population of people is intriguing, as well as lucky. There is no test to predict if someone is one of these "long term non-progressors," as the reasons for their good fortune are not well understood. If you have had a CD4 count of 25 at the time of diagnosis, however, it is clear that you are NOT one of these people.
There are no known cases in the scientific literature of individual patients who are actually "cured" of HIV. People with access to medications who respond well to them do live for years, and have long normal lives. I do know several women who have had healthy HIV negative babies even though they have HIV disease themselves.
As wonderful as the currently available HIV drugs are THEY ARE NOT A CURE. No cure is available, and at this point, I would strongly recommend staying on drugs with the understanding that they can make your health better for years to come. There is much information about people who stop their drugs. Once the medicine is out of your body, the virus grow rapidly, your T cells fall, and your health declines. Stopping and starting medications is bad for you. Keep up your good work and health, and maybe one day, there will be a real cure.
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