The 30-year fight against HIV

Since its identification as the cause of Aids in 1984, scientists have made major advancements in tackling virus1984 Retrovirus is discovered as cause of Aids and later named human immunodeficiency virus or HIV.1986 Clinical trials show that HIV patients taking AZT (azidothymidine), an antiretroviral drug initially developed as a cancer therapy, were living longer than those who did not. AZT is shown to manage, but not cure, HIV and reduce the rates of mother-to-child infection in pregnancy.1987 The US FDA approves AZT as the first antiretroviral to be used as a treatment for Aids.1995 Jeff Getty, Aids activist, becomes the first patient to receive bone marrow from a baboon to treat the disease. He rejects cells, and dies aged 49 in 2006 from Aids-related cancer. But the experiment provokes more research into primate immune resilience.1996 FDA approves first HIV home testing and collection kit. A viral load test which measures the level of HIV in the blood is introduced HIV/AIDS researcher Dr David Ho advocates "hit early, hit hard" in which patients are placed on new more aggressive treatment regimes earlier.The International AIDS Vacccine Initiative is formed to speed up search for effective vaccine.1997 HAART – highly active antiretroviral therapy (the use of three antiretroviral medications in combination) – becomes the new standard of HIV care. Due largely to use of HAART, Aids-related deaths in US decline by 47% compared to previous year.2002 First rapid HIV diagnos...
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - Category: Science Authors: Tags: The Guardian News Health Medical research Aids and HIV Society Source Type: news