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Context:

• A US patient has become the third person in the world, and the first woman, to be cured of HIV using umbilical cord blood,the deadly virus that causes AIDS.

What is HIV?

• Human immunodeficiency virus or HIV is an infection that attacks the immune system by destroying the body’s immune cells called CD4, which help it respond to infection.
• Once HIV attacks the CD4 cells, it starts replicating and destroying the cells, weakening the body’s immune system and making it more prone to certain “opportunistic infections” that take advantage of the weak immune system.
• In a nutshell, if HIV is not treated, it can lead to AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome).

Transmission:

• Bodily fluids such as blood, semen, vaginal fluids, rectal fluids and breastmilk can be carriers for HIV.
• It can be transmitted through unprotected sex, transfusion of contaminated blood, sharing needles and syringes, and from a mother with HIV to her infant during pregnancy.
• Typically, the time between HIV transmission and AIDS diagnosis is 10-15 years, although it may occur sooner.

Prevention:

• There's no vaccine to prevent HIV infection and no cure for AIDS. Protecting oneself from infection is the way ahead.

https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/hiv-cure-umbilical-cord-blood-explained-7788360/

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