The Facts
A woman at New York-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center has reportedly been cured of HIV.
She has shown no signs of infection since ending treatment in October 2020.
The Spin
Narrative A
This is a massive leap forward for science and medicine. This breakthrough has opened the door to curing dozens more HIV patients every year and saving countless more lives.
Narrative B
While remarkable, this doesn't bring us any closer to curing the 37 million - mostly Sub-Saharan African - people living with HIV. The treatment's risks make it suitable only for a very select class of people; if we truly hope to eradicate HIV we should focus on developing vaccines and drugs instead.
