Why is HIV not a Death Sentence?
Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, is an infection that destroys your CD4 cells and weakens your immune system. CD4 cells are the white blood cells that help to fight infection. Losing these cells will make your body lose the ability to fight against HIV-associated cancers and diseases. If proper treatment is not provided timely, HIV may advance to a chronic stage known as AIDS by completely destroying the immune system. AIDS, or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, is the last stage of HIV infection which may cause serious health complications. However, HIV is a serious infection; however, it is not a death sentence today because effective medications and treatment options have come up, helping people to get cured of this infection completely and even prevent the recurrence of HIV. Today the prognosis of HIV is better than that was a few decades earlier. Antiretroviral therapy ART, or antiretroviral therapy, is the most effective treatment for HIV and AIDS. These are the medic