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starmekitten
-= Forum Pistolera =-
United Kingdom
6370 Posts |
 Posted - 01/14/2005 : 22:34:12
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not new news no, but I only just found out about it (why didn't anyone tell me!) this is sad, really sad, and the bloody erasure gig near me sold out which is also very sad.
Yeah I like erasure, want to make something of it? hmm?
ERASURE STAR REVEALS HE'S HIV-POSITIVE
ERASURE singer ANDY BELL has revealed that he is HIV-Positive.
The star announced yesterday (December 14) that he has known about his condition since June 1998 when he suffered a bout of pneumonia.
Bell’s admission is his first step in a larger plan of speaking out and educating young people about HIV and AIDS, according to his spokesperson.
"Being HIV-positive does not mean that you have AIDS," Bell said in a statement. "My life expectancy should be the same as anyone else's, so there is no need to panic. There is still so much hysteria and ignorance surrounding HIV and AIDS. Let's just get on with life."
According to MTV News, long-time partner Paul Hickey has also tested positive.
Erasure are set to release their new album ’Nightbird’ on January 24 and Bell says that after undergoing drug-combination therapy he is feeling better than ever.
The band will kick off a tour in support of the new album in the UK around February or March before heading out to the US in April/May for a string of dates in ten to 15 cities. Multiple shows are planned in Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York, with as many as ten nights considered for the latter.
Bell’s spokesperson said that Erasure are considering adding on extra dates as benefit shows raising money for AIDS research and awareness.
In a statement announcing the album last month, Bell said: "The last couple of albums were a bit moody and down I'm so much happier with everything now. ... You can hear it in the music."
you
me
we used to be on fire |
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Superabounder
* Dog in the Sand *
USA
1049 Posts |
Posted - 01/14/2005 : 22:43:07
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| that is sad. I don't know a lot about it, but at least the treatments and drug combinations have gotten so much more effective that he may lead a relatively normal life as opposed to back in the early days of the virus. |
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starmekitten
-= Forum Pistolera =-
United Kingdom
6370 Posts |
Posted - 01/14/2005 : 22:56:38
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well I was reading this on BBC news website and it looks encouraging...
(and one in the eye for whoever it was who said gene therapy was useless)
Gene clue to HIV origin in humans
Scientists say they have uncovered an important clue to understanding the origins of the Aids epidemic.
They have pinpointed crucial differences in a gene found in rhesus monkeys that can prevent HIV infection, and its human counterpart, that cannot.
It appears that only a single change to the human gene is needed to enable it to block HIV infection.
The study, by the National Institute for Medical Research, is published in Current Biology.
The scientists say their work indicates that HIV would not have become established in the human population if mankind carried the same version of the gene found in rhesus monkeys.
Lead researcher Dr Jonathan Stoye said: "This discovery has significant implications for the development of effective gene therapy to combat Aids.
"In theory, it should be possible to take cells from an HIV-infected individual, make them resistant to HIV infection with the modified gene and reintroduce them into the patient. These cells could then block progression to Aids.
"Alternatively we could seek for drugs that activate the human gene against HIV."
Long term approach
Christopher Gadd, editor of HIV & AIDS Treatments Directory, told the BBC News website: "What is particularly exciting is that the researchers have identified that changing just one amino acid 'building block' in one protein can switch a cell from susceptible to insusceptible to long-term HIV infection.
"However, it is important to stress that any therapeutic benefits that may arise from this research are unlikely to be felt for many years.
"This type of gene therapy would involve removing white blood cells from patients, cloning them, and altering their genetic make-up before reintroducing them to the patient on an individual-by-individual basis.
"Although it is theoretically possible, this approach is unlikely to be practical or cost-effective with currently available technologies."
Jo Robinson, a senior treatment specialist at The HIV charity Terrence Higgins Trust agreed that gene therapy was a promising approach which might yield results in the longer term.
But she said: "We should stress that although this research is important we are still a long way from it having a practical application for people with HIV. There is still no cure for HIV and no vaccine."
According to the latest UNAIDS figures, at the end of 2004, 39.4 million people worldwide - 37.2 million adults and 2.2 million children younger than 15 years - are living with HIV/Aids.
HIV is a retrovirus that infects cells of the human immune system and destroys or impairs their function.
Infection with this virus can result in the progressive depletion of the immune system, which ultimately may lead to Aids.
---> Usually I'm pretty suspicious of any new story that starts along the lines of GENE FOR BLAH DISCOVERED as it is rarely as simple as that and gives off entirely the wrong impression of molecular/gene based research but this is quite interesting, especially if they are right and it is not a multifactoral disease and is linked to one gene. I'm going to look this up proper when the exams are finished I think.
you
me
we used to be on fire |
Edited by - starmekitten on 01/14/2005 22:57:42 |
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erasure
