How far away is a cure for HIV

This blog concentrates on HIV in combination with neuropathy and therefore, rarely posts about HIV on its own. However, today's video is of such general interest for all HIV-positive people that for once, straying away from the core topic can be forgiven. You can suffer from neuropathy without having HIV but for most of us, HIV is at the basis of whatever medical problems we have and as such, learning about progress towards a cure can only be of value. The truth is that, for whatever reasons, a cure for HIV is not around the corner; this video helps us understand why.




The following is the text that accompanies the video on YouTube:

What Can We Do Now to Speed Up HIV Cure Research?

After attending a meeting sponsored by several organizations (TAG, AMFAR, Project Inform, the AIDS Policy Project) in Baltimore on April 20-21 this year, I came to the realization that we needed a video that would wake people up to the challenges ahead of us to get to a cure of HIV that is accessible and practical. As most of you know, the case of Timothy Brown (aka The Berlin patient), a person who got cured of HIV and leukemia 5 years ago, has jolted a new energy and hope in the search for the cure. But most people with HIV, policy makers and potential funding sources are not fully aware of this case and what the new movement for a search for a cure are all about. So, I decided to travel around the country to interview key players in advancing this field to make a short video that could serve as a catalyst for awareness and change. This short video, done with a very low budget with the help of my activist friend Greg Fowler, is only part of a longer, more detailed documentary to be finished before World AIDS Day this year, the 30 year anniversary of the first AIDS cases. Please watch it and forward it to your friends. Please follow the suggestions made in that video and become part of the cure! Everyone can do something now to raise awareness and funds not only for research but also for advocacy and education in this important new and expanding area. I hope I can count on you.

--Nelson Vergel

Will it go away ever

From Dr Spitz at the Foot Pain Center. It's the question we all want answered but may not be happy with what we hear. If it's true what he says, learning to deal with neuropathy is of vital importance and that requires a huge mental adjustment for people who are used to taking a pill to cure what's wrong with them. Your ideas and tips for not letting neuropathy dominate your life please! They will help someone, somewhere!

Will my neuropathy pain and numbness ever go away completely?
The question reminds us of one who asks the “magic eight ball” a question-something like-will I ever become rich? The answer is usually vague-something like-“it’s a possibility.” In answering the question-can my neuropathy ever be cured-I also have to give a vague answer….”it’s possible, but not likely.” In rare instances, neuropathy can be reversed. In some instances when a specific nerve is injured, it can regenerate slowly. For example, in my 36 years of practicing podiatry in Orange County, Ca, I have seen neuropathy from nerve injury from surgery or trauma completely resolve. Nerve entrapments (nerves that bound in scar tissue) such as carpal or tarsal tunnel syndrome are often “treatable” by physical therapy, custom-fitting wrist or ankle braces, or surgery. Still in other cases, when a patient develops medication-induces neuropathy, especially from chemotherapy, complete reversal of symptoms may occur.

These examples are very rare. In actuality, in most instances neuropathy cannot be cured. From a positive perspective, new treatments make neuropathy more tolerable and livable. Diabetes, a major cause of neuropathy, can be better controlled with oral and insulin medications. There is also greater availability and effectiveness of oral and topical medications that can relief neuropathy symptoms of pain, numbness, tingling and burning of the feet. New light therapies including infrared and cold laser, has been shown to be effective in reducing the discomfort of neuropathy. Finally, the medical community has a greater appreciation, knowledge and acceptance of nutritional supplements as a means to control symptoms and slow the progression of the condition.

http://www.footpaincenter.info/will-my-neuropathy-pain-and-numbness-ever-go-away-completely