No. In the early years of the AIDS scare, the public was assured that HIV was fatal in all cases. Some dissident views were expressed but their proponents were mostly dismissed as conspiracy theorists. Recently, however mainstream medical science has recognised that a certain number of people develop HIV but not AIDS. These people have been dubbed 'elite controllers' and are generally estimated to constitute around 0.3% of the total HIV-infected population. Elite controllers test positive for HIV but virus levels within their bodies remain very low, even though they take no anti-AIDS medication. They remain healthy and do not develop AIDS-related illnesses.
Some research programs have focused on these elite controllers as a way to find a solution to the AIDS problem. It is hoped that, if some genetic trait they have in common could be identified, it might lead to a vaccine. Alternatively, some have speculated that the virus infecting these patients may have been defective in some way and that this, not any property of their own bodies, is what has led to them not getting ill.
Some research programs have focused on these elite controllers as a way to find a solution to the AIDS problem. It is hoped that, if some genetic trait they have in common could be identified, it might lead to a vaccine. Alternatively, some have speculated that the virus infecting these patients may have been defective in some way and that this, not any property of their own bodies, is what has led to them not getting ill.
