A man from California is in full remission from both HIV and blood cancer after a revolutionary stem cell treatment.
Researchers at City of Hope, a California-based non-profit clinical research center, successfully treated 68-year-old Paul Edmonds of Desert Springs for both acute myelogenous leukemia and HIV. Thanks to the transplantation of donated stem cells in 2019, Edmonds is now the fifth person to be in remission for both conditions.
“Transplant was a breeze,” he recalled in a press release from City of Hope. “I started feeling pretty good almost immediately and just continued to feel really good.”
Finding a compatible donor with the homozygous CCR5 delta mutation affecting just up to 2% of the population was like winning the lottery, according to Edmonds. This mutation makes individuals resistant to most strains of HIV due to the virus using the CCR5 receptor to attack the immune system.
While Edmonds was able to stop his antiretroviral therapies three years ago thanks to the extraordinary donor match, he lived with HIV for 31 years and eventually acquired leukemia. Due to HIV weakening the immune system, those with the virus are more susceptible to blood cancer.
He underwent three rounds of chemotherapy between November 2018 and January 2023, the last being a reduced-intensity round customized for older patients at City of Hope.
Edmonds stands as a testimony of hope for those of an advanced age living with HIV.
Jana Dickter, a clinical professor at City of Hope, thinks that the revolutionary treatment received by Edmonds is just one of many more on the horizon.
“As people with HIV continue to live longer, there will be more opportunities for personalized treatments for their blood cancers,” she said, according to a news release.
Several leaps have been made in the field of oncology of late, such as personalized tumor-reducing vaccines and gene therapies, as covered in The Dallas Express.
Cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases nationwide, with an estimated 2 million Americans being newly diagnosed with one of its many forms in 2023, according to the National Cancer Institute.
While there are several genetic and behavioral factors at play in assessing one’s cancer risk, being obese has been shown to heighten the risk for certain cancers. A sugar-laden diet is also considered to play a considerable role in cancerous growth, yet the exact mechanisms for this are still poorly understood.
Obesity rates nationwide have been growing for years due in large part to poor diets and sedentary lifestyles, as The Dallas Express reported. Texas was recently shown to have an adult obesity rate of 35.5% as of 2022, according to the CDC.