Modern medicine has now made astounding progress in extending the life expectancy for those with HIV by, in some cases, 15+ years.
A study conducted in Britain has looked at data of 17,000+ adults with HIV who were treated with the antiretroviral drugs, which slow the progress of the virus, and found that the treatment raised life expectancy by upwards of 15 years. In 1996, those who started using the treatment by age 20 would have lived until age 50, but in 2008, they were expected to live to age 66 on average. These numbers have stayed constant since then (although it is seen that women normally outlive men by about 10 years).
Catching and treating the virus early is the key to increasing longevity. A Boston-based research group has noted that while the study is very encouraging, not everyone with HIV was included in this study and so it will continue to be an individual battle. The results do, however, encourage regular HIV screenings, because a majority of those infected are unaware.
[Photo: Trygve Utstumo (Tygve.u) on Flickr]
Samantha Galasso
Samantha Galasso was brought up in Wilton, Connecticut which is so small it really shouldn’t even be considered a town, more like a blip on the map of Fairfield County. She can credit her skewed outlook on today’s world to catholic school and cynical Gay Best Friend. She ...
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