A baby born with the virus that causes AIDS appears to have been cured, scientists said on Sunday, describing the case of a child from Mississippi who is now two and a half years old and has been off medication for about a year with no signs of infection.
There is no guarantee that the child will remain healthy, but sophisticated testing uncovered just traces of the virus’ genetic material still lingering. If so, it would mark only the world’s second reported cure.
Specialists say Sunday’s announcement, at a major AIDS meeting in Atlanta, offers promising clues for efforts to eliminate HIV infection in children, especially in some AIDS-plagued African countries.
“You could call this about as close to a cure, if not a cure, that we’ve seen,” said Dr Anthony Fauci of the US National Institutes of Health.
A doctor gave this baby faster and stronger treatment than is usual, starting a three-drug infusion within 30 hours of birth. That was before tests confirmed the infant was infected and not just at risk from a mother whose HIV wasn’t diagnosed until she was in labour.
“I just felt this baby was at higher-than-normal risk, and deserved our best shot,” said Dr Hannah Gay, a pediatric HIV specialist at the University of Mississippi.
That fast action apparently knocked out the HIV in the baby’s blood before it could form hideouts in the body. Those so-called reservoirs of dormant cells usually rapidly re infect anyone who stops medication, said Dr Deborah Persaud of Johns Hopkins Children’s Centre. She led the investigation that deemed the child “functionally cured”.