A new study's findings note that a French teenager, who was born HIV positive, has been in remission for 12 years without receiving any medications and other types of treatments. The researchers are baffled why no trace of a virus infection has been detected in the teen despite her receiving no drugs, and explain her health state is not equal to a human immunodeficiency virus-acquired immune deficiency syndrome (HIV-AIDS) cure.
Asier Sáez-Cirión conducted the research. He is an assistant professor working at the Pasteur Institute in France.
The teenager was born in 1996 to a mother with an HIV diagnosis, and received antiretroviral therapy for six years, according to ABC News. Her therapy was halted at the family's request.
When a local medical team tested the girl one year later, her viral loads were undetected. More complex testing could catch smaller virus groups.
The French girl is now 18 years old. Her first anti-HIV drug was zidovudine, and she has received no prescription meds for the past 12 years. Her remission's length, which started at 21 months old, is a world record for a youngster, according to The Star.
She is still classified as HIV positive. However, the deadly disease has gone into remission as her physicians have monitored the disease's progression.
Professor Jean-François Delfraissy is an AIDS research director. He stated that the teenager's HIV remission does not indicate a cure. Her state of health could change.
However, he stated that her case is critical. It stresses the importance of starting antiretroviral therapy for children with HIV positive mothers, soon after birth.
Anthony Fauci is director at the United States' National Institutes of Health (NIH). He said that there is no scientific explanation for how the teen is "controlling" the virus.
Sáez-Cirión noted that the French youngster might have a normal lifespan. However, it is quite likely that her immune system will weaken as she ages.
About 35 million people worldwide are HIV positive. The first AIDS cases occurred in the U.S. cities of New York and California in the early 1980s.