British man cured of HIV. (NRR)
Swayze
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A BRITISH man has become the first HIV sufferer in the world to be CURED of the killer virus, we can reveal.[/b]In a sensational development that will bring hope to millions dying of Aids, 25-year-old Andrew Stimpson has miraculously tested NEGATIVE for the disease after having it for more than a year.The results so dumbfounded doctors they repeated the test TWICE because they couldn't believe it ??? but they could find no trace of HIV in his blood.They have labelled Andrew's case "medically remarkable". And a spokeswoman for Aids charity the Terence Higgins Trust said: "Nobody has ever spontaneously cleared themselves of HIV."It's the statistical equivalent of going to the moon without a spaceship. HIV researchers will be jumping up and down about this."Now sandwich maker Andrew is to offer himself for medical tests to unlock the secret in his body that has killed off a virus responsible for wiping out 20 million people worldwide since 1981."I feel truly special and lucky," he said. "All the doctors have told me it is a medical miracle that I am clear."I remember after the repeat tests my doctor came into the room saying, ???You've cured yourself! This is unbelievable, You're fantastic!'""It's important for me to help with research because it can be a big step forward towards a cure for everyone."Weak[/b]Gay Andrew, from Largs, Ayrshire, caught the virus from his HIV-positive boyfriend Juan.In May, 2002, worried that he was feeling tired, weak and feverish, he had three blood tests at the Victoria Clinic for Sexual Health in west London, which specialises in HIV.At first they were all negative ??? but Andrew was told the virus takes three months to show up in the blood after contraction.And when he returned for more tests in August, this time they found HIV anti-bodies that proved it was lurking in his body.He said: "The doctor had said I could live for 10 years, 20 years, maybe 40 years. But I felt instinctively that I would die young."I had just turned 22 but after the diagnosis my energy for life was completely lost."Andrew shared his terrible secret with only two people???his boyfriend and his 20-year-old sister Louise.Andrew added: "One thing I decided early on was that I never wanted to see the HIV through to Aids." Andrew even began planning his suicide in case he developed full-blown Aids.Praying[/b]Even though he knew the odds were stacked against him, Andrew began taking a daily cocktail of supplements in a bid to keep as healthy as possible.Because he was in the early stages ??? with a low HIV count in his blood ??? he did not need medication."I kept praying for someone to come on the news to announce a remedy. I was praying for some miracle to happen."And just over a year after Andrew's first diagnosis, it did. Every two months he was going for blood tests and checks on his liver, heart and immune system.Doctors were astonished at his continuing excellent health, unusual for an HIV sufferer.So in October 2003 he was offered a repeat HIV test ??? and the result came back negative."I was baffled," said Andrew. "I couldn't understand how anyone could cure themselves of HIV."I'd read the research, I knew it had never happened before. I didn't understand how I could be negative after one year especially because I had been having unprotected sex with my partner after the diagnosis, believing we had nothing to lose."Andrew was convinced there must have been a mistake ??? not daring to let himself believe the miracle he had prayed for had happened. He was tested again twice and again the results were negative.Andrew still can't believe what has happened. "I was told for an HIV result to turn from positive into negative is one in a million, billion, trillion chance," he said."My life's gone from one extreme to the other. Now all my dreams are back. I'm not religious, but I feel blessed."Lisa Power, from the Terence Higgins Trust, said: "If Andrew has been cleared of the virus, that needs to be investigated thoroughly to see if it can be reproduced in any way."This could be of major interest to HIV researchers. We need to find out precisely what's happened with this person."DO you have a story? Call us any day free on 0800 279 3786, text us on 07770 381560 or email us at [email]newsdesk@notw.co.uk[/email]___________________________________http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/story_pages/news/news3.shtml
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Your Weekly World News
SECONDHAND FAT KILLS!
. . . It's more deadly than smoke
By SHARON HUMPHREYS
THERE'S something even deadlier in the air than secondhand smoke -- it's secondhand fat, says a top researcher.
For years, doctors have been baffled by the high number of heart attack deaths of extremely skinny people, who were married to fatties or living with whale-size family members.
Some theorized that they just might be getting clogged arteries because they adopted the same poor eating habits of their obese spouses or housemates.
But now, Dr. Benjamin Myers, an obesity specialist in Bristol, Conn., says that invisible particles of fat detach themselves from obese people and are breathed in by those around them.
"I believe that fatties exude teensy-weensy bits of fat into the air which is picked up by those around them and can actually affect them in a negative way," explains Myers. "It seems that thin people are especially susceptible to this secondhand fat and, before you know it they keel over from a clogged artery even if they've been eating nothing but rabbit food all their lives.
"I can't tell you how many cases I've seen of a Jack Spratt, who's eaten no fat for 40 years, suddenly keel over with a heart attack. Meanwhile, his whalesized wife, who has been pigging out on fat-filled foods, keeps wallowing along."
Ironically, Myers is slated to be an expert witness at an upcoming Pennsylvania murder trial, in which an obese diet-cheating husband is accused of slaying his reed-thin wife with secondhand fat.
"Every night, as he crammed chocolate cake and cookies into his puss, his wife would nag him, 'Look at you, you are going to kill yourself,'" says Myers. "Little did she know that he was out to kill HER!"
Another expert, diet guru Dr. Sidney Blylock of Galveston, Texas, believes that secondhand fat may also be the reason that many diets fail.
"You can't believe the number of dieters nationwide who swear on a stack of Bibles that they haven't cheated on their diets even though they're gaining weight -- well, they're not all liars," says Blylock. "A dieter goes out to a nice restaurant, orders a salad or maybe a sliver of fish -- and gains 3 pounds because the guy at the next table was packing in calorie-crammed desserts and pastas like there's no tomorrow."
The doctors believe secondhand fat is a deadly menace and people should be wary of it while in public.
"People should take a good look around them," warns Myers. "Instead of worrying about that cigarette someone at the next table may be holding in their fingers, they should be more concerned of invisible fat globules released in the air by the roly-poly woman gorging herself at a nearby table."
Published on: 09/28/2005
It is in the news, but apparently dude won't get tested to confirm.
Sun Nov 13,11:50 AM ET
LONDON (AFP) - Doctors urged a British man to come forward for further tests after he claimed to have become the first person in the world to become clear of the HIV virus.
Andrew Stimpson was diagnosed as HIV-positive in August 2002 but tests 14 months later showed the virus had completely disappeared from his body, according to hospital officials.
The 25-year-old, from Largs, on Scotland's west coast, told two British newspapers he felt special and blessed to have been "cured" and pledged to help medics in their fight against the condition, which usually leads to AIDS.
"It's so amazing to think that one day I was staring death in the face and now I am waving it goodbye," Stimpson told the News of the World.
But doctors at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London who carried out the initial tests on Stimpson's blood, were more cautious, stopping short of saying he had been given the all-clear.
"I can confirm that he has a positive and a negative test," a spokeswoman said Sunday. "I can't confirm with you that he's shaken it off, that he's been cured.
"When we became aware of his HIV-negative result, we offered him further tests to help us investigate and find an explanation. So far he has declined to do so."
She added: "We urge him, for the sake of himself and the HIV community, to come in and get tested."
On being told the negative results, Stimpson considered suing the hospital for bungling the initial test, it was reported.
But he received a letter from the hospital last month stating there was no case to answer. An investigation had confirmed the blood in all the samples was his and there were no mix-ups.
"Those tests are both accurate, the positive and a negative. They are correct," said the hospital spokeswoman Sunday.
Stimpson said he was suprised at the so-called "spontaneous clearance" -- which has been reported anecdotally -- because he had given up safe sex with his infected boyfriend, 44-year-old Juan Gomez after the diagnosis.
"I have no idea how I got rid of the virus... But maybe it's all down to some genetics in my immune system -- so it's important for me to help with research because it can be a big step forward towards a cure for everyone," he told the News of the World.
Doctor George Kinghorn, an HIV specialist at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield, told the News of the World: "If we can better understand what happened inside Andrew's body, it could prove to be a step towards a breakthrough in beating the HIV virus."
Deborah Jack, chief executive of the National Aids Trust, said: "This appears to be a highly unusual case and without further tests it is impossible to draw any conclusions for people living with HIV.
"The virus is extremely complex and there are many unknowns about how it operates and how people's bodies react to it.
"Therefore, if this case were able to shed further light, it could be extremely valuable for research into treatments or a cure."
Stimpson first went for tests in May 2002 after feeling weak and feverish. They came back negative. However, the virus can take three months to appear in the blood after contraction.
Tests in August that year found an exceptionally low level of HIV anti-bodies.
Because he was in the early stages, he did not require medication, but doctors were surprised by his continuing good health.
Repeat tests in October 2003 and ever since have come back negative.
The BBC has it as one of their top stories for those interested. BBC story