Some good news for a change: Possible HIV breakthrough

[Bluebear]

"Maybe a cure is conceivable"

THURSDAY, Aug. 11 (HealthDay News) -- In what may prove to be a major breakthrough in the fight against HIV, researchers testing a new approach to treating the disease are inching closer toward a possible cure by eliminating reservoirs of the virus that escape current treatment by hiding in some cells.

Although these findings are preliminary and were obtained using only four patients, the scientists hope that what they have found for the first time is a way of clearing the body of all HIV infection.

"The new approach, in the future, may allow us to make progress in eradication of infection in an HIV-infected person," said lead researcher Dr. David M. Margolis, a professor of medicine and public health at the University of North Carolina.

The report appears in the Aug. 13 issue of The Lancet.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20050811/hl_hsn/newhivtherapyclearsouthiddenvirus&printer=1

[jim3775]

1. Something very similar happened two years ago

There was a breakthrough AIDS vaccine that worked great in lab tests. The scientists started a huge human trial which was a complete failure.

[Bluebear]

2. Well that's cheery :) But these were tested in humans

Valproic acid is an anti-seizure med. Perhaps some epileptic patients showed some great coincidental improvement. Anyhow, it's an important ray of hope for people who suffer from the illness.