A 63-year-old Norwegian man, known as the 'Oslo patient,' has entered long-term HIV remission following a stem cell transplant from his brother, researchers say.
The patient originally underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat a rare type of blood cancer. During the procedure, doctors discovered his brother carried a specific genetic mutation, CCR5Δ3/Δ32, which prevents the virus from entering white blood cells.
Researchers at Oslo University Hospital tracked the patient for five years following the allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). They found that all traces of functioning HIV DNA had been cleared from the patient's system.
A breakthrough in viral eradication
Clinical tests showed the patient was able to stop his antiretroviral medication two years after the transplant. Five years post-procedure, there was no evidence of viral rebound.
Notably, the researchers found the patient's gut—a primary reservoir where HIV often remains dormant—was clear of functioning HIV DNA. While some viral fragments remained, they were non-functional and unable to replicate.
'The case of the Oslo patient contributes valuable evidence to the existing knowledge base regarding HIV cure cases,' the research team wrote in their paper published in Nature Microbiology.
Testing also revealed that the patient's HIV-specific antibodies declined and his T cells stopped responding to the virus. This suggests the body's biological memory of the infection had effectively faded.
Despite the breakthrough, doctors say stem cell transplants are not a practical cure for the general population. The procedure is a high-risk 'reboot' of the immune system that carries a significant mortality rate.
Data shows that roughly 10 to 20 percent of patients undergoing these transplants die within one year. The Oslo patient himself suffered from graft-versus-host disease, a severe immune reaction, though his body eventually overcame the condition.
