THE SUN
A MAN was “cured” of HIV and leukaemia after a “remarkable” stem cell transplant from a donor with a rare genetic mutation.
Paul Edmonds, 67, was diagnosed with AIDS in 1988.
After living with the condition for 30 years, he was diagnosed myelodysplastic syndrome in 2018, which eventually developed into acute myeloid leukaemia (AML).
This is common in older people with HIV – the cause of AIDS – as their weakened immune system makes them vulnerable to developing leukaemia and other blood cancers.
Paul never imagined he’d be free of the disease.
But since receiving a groundbreaking stem cell transplant at the City of Hope cancer treatment and research centre in California in 2019, Paul has been in remission from the killer condition for five years.
In another two years, he could be considered ‘cured’ of HIV, as that will mark five years from his last treatment for the condition.
To celebrate, the medical team behind his astonishing recovery has published a letter describing his treatment in the New England Journal of Medicine.
When the medical breakthrough was first announced in July 2022, Paul wished to remain anonymous and was nicknamed ‘the City of Hope patient‘.
But he’s now chosen to speak out about his story.
He’s the fifth person to be cured of HIV and the oldest to go into long-term remission.
Paul, from Desert Hot Springs, California, said: “A big reason I want to tell my story is to bring some hope for people with HIV.
“And I want to remember all those we lost.”
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