United Nations Development Program: “HIV Clickbait or Cure?”

“Recently the world was shaken up by the news of a second patient being ‘cured’ of HIV. On the surface, at least, it was big news: a possible cure to one of the deadliest epidemics of the past century…

This news represents a scientific breakthrough. Still, we should be careful not to give false hope to the 36.9 million people living with HIV worldwide. The treatment received by the two men, a bone marrow transplant, is a risky, expensive procedure, and a treatment of last resort. It can’t be performed on a large scale…

We should also continue to embrace the potential of treatment as prevention. The science is clear: undetectable = untransmissible (U=U). When someone is living with HIV and virally suppressed, they cannot transmit the virus to others.”

Read more of Ludo Bok’s blog post at www.undp.org.