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Despite reported 'cure', the fight against HIV continues

Today on Front Burner, Canada Research Chair Eric Arts explains how this week’s milestone in HIV/AIDS research fits into the decades long fight against the disease.
CBC News ·
A man in a blue polo shirt and jacket with close cropped hair and a goatee stands near a window.
Timothy Ray Brown, also known as the "Berlin patient," was the first person to be seemingly cured of HIV infection. Now researchers are reporting on a second patient. But such transplants are dangerous, cannot be used widely and have failed in other patients. (Manuel Valdes/The Associated Press)

This week, a major milestone in HIV/AIDS research made headlines worldwide.

A man known as the "London Patient" has seemingly been "cured" after receiving a bone marrow transplant from a donor with an HIV-resistant genetic mutation. It's only the second time in history a procedure like this has been executed successfully.

But while some doctors are inspired by this week's breakthrough, others are more cautious in their optimism. Today on Front Burner, we track the historical battle against the virus and what it means for future progress with help from Canada Research Chair in HIV Pathogenesis and Viral Control, Eric Arts.

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