Discovered the second person in the world to cure himself of HIV

An Argentinian woman has become the second person in the world to have an immune system that may have helped her to cure herself of HIV.

The researchers called this case - a 30-year-old mother diagnosed with HIV in 2013 - 'Patient Esperanza' after the town in Argentina where the woman lived. In the Spanish language, 'esperanza' means 'hope'.

'I'm enjoying a healthy life' - 'Patient Esperanza' told NBC News in Spanish via email. She remains anonymous because of the social stigma associated with HIV.

'I have a healthy family. I don't have to take drugs and live like nothing happened. This is a privilege,' she added.

Color scanning image of T cells under a microscope. It is blue, green, HIV infected cells are yellow. HIV enters on its own and tricks the cellular machinery into making copies. (Photo: NAID).

The authors of the study - published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine on November 15 - said they believe the findings offer hope for the estimated 38 million people globally living with HIV and for the whole world. The field of HIV treatment research is expanding.

This international team of scientists has been studying the DNA of 'Patient Esperanza' since 2017 to trace the virus. They even tested the HIV patient's placenta when she gave birth in March 2020. After sequencing billions of cells, the scientists confirmed that the woman no longer had HIV.

This is one of two cases considered proof-of-concept of what is known as HIV self-treatment through natural immunity.

"This is really the miracle of the human immune system," said Dr. Xu Yu, a viral immunologist at the Ragon Institute in Boston. The expert, in collaboration with Dr. Natalia Laufer, a therapeutic scientist at the INBIRS Institute in Buenos Aires, Argentina, led a comprehensive study of any remaining HIV virus in the body 'Patient Esperanza' .

'Now we have to figure out the mechanism,' said Dr Steven Deeks, a prominent HIV cure researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not involved in the study.

'How did this happen? And how can we resynthesize that treatment for everyone?'.

Today, patients living with HIV can take daily medication to reduce the amount of virus in their bodies, thereby stopping the virus from spreading and helping them live healthier lives.

Adam Castillejo - known as the "London Patient" - made his first public appearance in the media in 2020. (Photo: New York Times).

In history, 4 people have ever been declared cured of HIV. However, 2 of these 4 people, including 'Berlin Patient' and 'London Patient', were cured after a stem cell transplant. This method contains too many risks, and scientists have tried to research to expand the treatment to other patients but without success.

Prior to 'Patient Esperanza', scientists identified only one person with HIV that resolved on its own without medical intervention as the "San Francisco Patient", recorded in 2020.