cured a man of HIV through a bone marrow

In November, German haematologist Gero Huetter announced that he had cured a man of HIV through a bone marrow transplant from a donor who had a genetic resistance to the virus. Huetter spoke at a press conference in Berlin stating that the patient, who was taken off antiretroviral drugs after the transplant two years before, continued to show no traces of the virus, leading doctors to declare him “functionally cured”.⁴² However, it was generally accepted that the operation did not present a viable cure for AIDS. Researchers cautioned that further testing was needed to ensure that the virus had been completely eradicated and not just suppressed to very low levels or become latent. ⁴³

"100 days to fight AIDS" march in Washington D.C.

Also in November, Barack Obama was elected President of the United States of America. As part of his election campaign, Obama released a plan to combat global HIV and AIDS promising a move away from ideology and a greater focus on “best practice” in America’s HIV/AIDS strategy.⁴⁴ At home, Obama committed to implementing a comprehensive national strategy on HIV and AIDS in America in his first year, and to signing universal health care legislation by the end of his first term. In terms of America’s response to HIV and AIDS overseas, Obama pledged that he would substantially increase funding to both PEPFAR and the Global Fund.⁴⁵ However, commentators questioned the likelihood of this pledge being followed through in the context of an unfolding international financial crisis.

Obama also openly supported lifting the ban on states using federal funding for needle exchange programmes⁴⁶ and pledged to overturn the controversial policy banning funding to international organisations that perform or promote abortion (known as the global gag rule). As the year drew to a close, HIV/AIDS advocacy groups and commentators expressed high expectations for the future of America's response to the AIDS epidemic under Obama. However there was emphasis on the need to maintain pressure to ensure that campaign promises are followed through.