Timothy Brown is the only man known to have been cured of HIV.
Also known as “The Berlin Patient,” Brown was diagnosed with HIV in 1995 as he was studying in Berlin, Germany.
Having used antiretroviral therapy to control the virus for many years, Brown was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). In 2007, he underwent stem cell transplantation after unsuccessfully trying chemotherapy.
The transplant was a last-ditch attempt to cure the rapidly progressing cancer.
Brown had a donor and after a second transplant from the same person in 2008, the third was a success.
Nine years down the line, Brown is free from cancer and detectable HIV.
Despite the success, Brown says that his recovery was complicated as he became delirious and had to have a brain biopsy done. He also has some neurological problems that require continuous care.
On Monday, reports indicating that a team of scientists from five UK universities could have possibly broken through with a cure for HIV were published in UK papers.
From the reports, a British man could become the first person in the world to be cured of HIV.
Scientists carrying out the trial said that presently the virus is completely undetectable in the man’s blood.
They, however, pointed out that this could be a result regular drugs use.
If the dormant cells are also cleared out, this therapy could represent the first complete cure.
Trial results are expected to be published in 2018.