Cure for AIDS
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Saint, I'm disappointed that you posted this. There are probably many here who respect your opinion and take what you say as "Gospel" so to speak. Magic Johnson is infected with the HIV virus. He credits his body's good response to the meds he takes.
Sorry but I couldn't just let that one go.
Not in this forum :mj07:
Of course Magic has HIV. He's also in the .00000000001% of the population that can afford HAART which is why he's lived so long.
Magic has HIV but does not have AIDS..
If Magic Johnson would of had AIDS he would of died a long time ago.. Once you have it, you are as good as :sadwave:
But now that may be changing do to this.
If Magic Johnson would of had AIDS he would of died a long time ago.. Once you have it, you are as good as :sadwave:
But now that may be changing do to this.
I feel a need to provide a little bit of education here since this is my personal area of interest. The HIV virus, untreated, leads to destruction of the immune system. When the condition of the immune system is depleted to a certain point, or when a patient experiences one of a number of specific opportunistic infections, their diagnosis changes to AIDS. While their official diagnosis does not change, this doesn't mean that the immune system can't or won't respond to treatment with HAART (highly active anti-retroviral therapy). I have seen patients who were at death's door, with their T-cell counts in single digits (normal T-cell count is 500-1500) whose immune systems responded to therapy and, while diagnosed with AIDS several years ago, are living normal lives today.
The recovery of T-cells is a slow process since the body deals with minor infections on a daily basis and the immune cells are used in this battle. Untreated HIV allows the immune cells to become depleted without the ability to produce more. HAART affords the body the ability to replenish those T-cells.
While HAART is expensive (approx. $1,000/month), it is covered by private health insurance, Medicaid and ADAP, the AIDS Drug Assistance Plan. ADAP is funded by Federal funds and the programs are administered by the individual states. For those who earn too much money for the government programs and do not have insurance coverage, the drug companies themselves have patient assistance programs. To say that Magic Johnson has done so well with his disease because he is wealthy is off the mark.
The discovery of the results of the Berlin patient's cancer treatment is a hope for a cure but not an equitable solution for the millions who are infected. The scarcity of people who carry the "immunity gene (1-3% of the population) and the inherent risks of a bone marrow transplant are both quite prohibitive to be considered as a standard treatment. I think the potential for a cure may come with further research into this phenomena.
Until then, it is important to be tested. It is imperative for everyone who is at, even minimal risk, to know their status and act responsibly to prevent the spread of the disease.
The recovery of T-cells is a slow process since the body deals with minor infections on a daily basis and the immune cells are used in this battle. Untreated HIV allows the immune cells to become depleted without the ability to produce more. HAART affords the body the ability to replenish those T-cells.
While HAART is expensive (approx. $1,000/month), it is covered by private health insurance, Medicaid and ADAP, the AIDS Drug Assistance Plan. ADAP is funded by Federal funds and the programs are administered by the individual states. For those who earn too much money for the government programs and do not have insurance coverage, the drug companies themselves have patient assistance programs. To say that Magic Johnson has done so well with his disease because he is wealthy is off the mark.
The discovery of the results of the Berlin patient's cancer treatment is a hope for a cure but not an equitable solution for the millions who are infected. The scarcity of people who carry the "immunity gene (1-3% of the population) and the inherent risks of a bone marrow transplant are both quite prohibitive to be considered as a standard treatment. I think the potential for a cure may come with further research into this phenomena.
Until then, it is important to be tested. It is imperative for everyone who is at, even minimal risk, to know their status and act responsibly to prevent the spread of the disease.
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i`d love to know the breakdown between governmental aids and cancer research funding compared to the percentage of u.s. population affected....
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You're a smart guy, the point was Magic has lived as long as he has because he has access to care that just about everyone else can't afford. But you knew that.
Saint, can you f'ing read? Let me state this again. While HAART is expensive (approx. $1,000/month), it is covered by private health insurance, Medicaid and ADAP, the AIDS Drug Assistance Plan. ADAP is funded by Federal funds and the programs are administered by the individual states. For those who earn too much money for the government programs and do not have insurance coverage, the drug companies themselves have patient assistance programs. To say that Magic Johnson has done so well with his disease because he is wealthy is off the mark.
Prove me wrong.
The US population was approximately 301,139,947 in 2007
From Kaiser Family Foundation
? Number of people living with HIV/AIDS: 1.2 million, including more than 400,000 with AIDS
? In FY 2007, U.S. federal funding for HIV/AIDS is estimated to total $23.4 billion. Of this, 56% is for care, 11% for research, 9% for cash and housing assistance, 4% for prevention, and 19% for combating the international epidemic.
