By 𝔸bdulrazak Tomiwa

Doctors have announced that a 63-year-old Norwegian man, the “Oslo patient,” is effectively cured of HIV following a high-risk stem cell transplant. 

He is one of only about 10 people worldwide to achieve long-term remission through this method. Notably, he is the first person to be cured using a transplant from a family member.

The patient, living with HIV since 2006, was diagnosed with a fatal blood cancer in 2017. Because stem cell transplants are life-threatening, they are reserved for HIV patients who also have terminal cancer.

Doctors sought a donor with a rare CCR5 gene mutation that naturally blocks HIV from entering cells.

After failing to find an outside match, doctors selected the man’s elder brother for the 2020 transplant. On the day of the procedure, they were stunned to discover the brother unknowingly carried the rare virus-blocking mutation. The lead doctor described the discovery as amazing, while the patient felt he had “won the lottery twice.”

The transplant successfully replaced the patient’s entire immune system with his brother’s. Researchers observed this complete replacement in both his bone marrow and gut, a first for a cured patient.

This new, resistant immune system provided a permanent defense, preventing the HIV from replicating or spreading.

Two years after the procedure, the man stopped taking the anti-retroviral drugs typically used to manage the virus. Exhaustive testing of his blood, bone marrow, and gut followed the cessation of treatment. Doctors found no trace of HIV anywhere, confirming that the virus had been entirely eradicated from his body.

Medics now consider the man cured, noting he has more energy than he knows what to do with. His doctors suggested his nickname is no longer suitable because he no longer feels or lives like a patient. He has now returned to a normal life with a robust and healthy immune system.

While a breakthrough, this high-risk procedure remains a rare option only for those with life-threatening cancer. It is not yet a feasible cure for the millions of others living with HIV worldwide. However, these rare cases offer vital insights that could eventually lead to a universal cure.