Traditional Medicine Could Help Treat HIV/AIDS, HIV Co-Discoverer Says
Dr. Luc Montagnier, a co-discoverer of HIV, said Sunday that traditional medicine can play a role in treating HIV/AIDS but added that all natural medicines must be subject to rigorous testing to ensure their safety and effectiveness, Agence France-Presse reports (Agence France-Presse, 1/28). In an interview with the Cameroonian newspaper Le Messager, Montagnier said that antiretroviral therapy should be "the base" of HIV/AIDS treatment, but added that there should also be different treatments to "complement" this regimen (Nguichi/Dasie, Le Messager, 1/27). Traditional medicine must only be used in conjunction with antiretroviral treatment and must be tested for safety and efficacy, he said, adding that the benefits of such treatments cannot be determined without "conclusive experimentation" (Agence France-Presse, 1/28). "Regardless of whether it is a pharmaceutical or a plant extract, a drug must be subject to strict clinical testing and meet objective criteria in order to demonstrate its efficacy," Montagnier stated (Le Messager, 1/27). Montagnier also announced the creation of a new AIDS research center in Cameroon (Agence France-Presse, 1/28). One of the goals of the center will be to examine traditional medicine, "vaccine therapy" and other treatments that complement antiretroviral treatment, he stated (Le Messager, 1/27).
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