People with HIV will have a better chance of living a longer life if treatments are given as soon as diagnosis is made, according to a new study conducted by federal health officials.
This conclusion was made in the middle of a large clinical study being conducted to show the benefits of getting tested and thus being administered medicines early on. The benefits seen were great, which led the research to be concluded pre-maturely.
About 53% of those diagnosed early on and were given immediate treatment for the virus had a lesser chance of dying or developing more serious diseases like AIDS or other complications.
Director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Disease, Dr. Anthony Fauci said, "This is another incentive to seek out testing and start therapy early, because you will benefit." He added that the sooner the HIV medication, the better.
Said to be the largest trial to date, findings of this trial can also support international health organizations like UNAIDS in raising funds for the treatment.
The New York Times added that the organization doesn't have enough funds for AIDS treatment. "This is a defining moment," UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibe said. "This puts an end to the false debate about whether to pay for treatment."
The World Health Organization describes the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as an infection of immune cells that results in a body unable to fight diseases. Transmitted through unprotected sexual intercourse, contaminated needles and blood transfusion, this virus makes the patient vulnerable to sickness like tuberculosis and cancer.
Those with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, AIDS, are referred to as severe HIV cases.
WHO and UNAIDS report that in 2013, 35 million people are living with HIV and 1.5 million have died because of AIDS-related diseases.
In the U.S., Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that out of 12 million HIV cases, only 450,000 patients undergo medical treatment. Factors like untested patients, financial problems and doctors' ignorance cause them to remain uncured.
No possible treatment has ever been discovered to completely cure AIDS yet.
