On Tuesday, January 14th, the defeatHIV Community Advisory Board (CAB) sponsored a community event; “THE WORD ON AN HIV CURE.”
This evening was a great way for people to meet defeatHIV, the scientists & the community members who have come together to support the research into an HIV cure conducted in Seattle at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
The two men who lead defeatHIV, Drs.Keith Jerome and Hans-Peter Kiem , spoke about their current research and answered questions on how they plan to use gene therapy techniques to create HIV-resistant cells and to ‘snip’ HIV from its hiding places in our DNA throughout the body.
Their research attempts to imitate the unique case of Timothy Ray Brown, the first person to be cured of HIV. The scientists of defeatHIV want to make his HIV cure accessible to many more people using some nontraditional methods.
This event started a community conversation around HIV cure research and the necessary roles that only community members can fulfill, which is a discussion you will want to add your own voice to the mix.
As a group of people from various communities around Seattle, we have gathered to support this local work towards an HIV cure. We are convinced that community voices as educators and advocates are needed now at the start of this journey to ensure that whatever cure may come is accessible to everyone.
If we are ever to see a cure for HIV achieved in our lifetimes, we will need every one of us to play a part.
Please join us on this journey.
