I hear from doctors that hiv is becoming more and more like a manageable chronic

Question:

I hear from doctors that hiv is becoming more and more like a manageable chronic life long?

illness like diabetes rather than a fatal one, and it only becomes fatal when people stop taking there meds or don't adher to the exact schedule of them (now that i hear a "once a day pill for hiv" has come out i don't see how hard it is to stick with that) has anyone else heard anything on this subject? i'd love to hear some feedback.thanks

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

Yes, it is. The average life expectancy for someone who has AIDS and receives treatment is roughly 24 years. The reason that people have trouble with keeping up with the meds isn't necessarily that they can't manage to remember to take the pills, it's that they're EXTREMELY expensive and most people can't afford to keep paying for them. AZT for example is $4000/year - and that's just one drug out of the complex which are usually needed for proper treatment. Since AIDS disrupts the immune system, there's usually more drugs needed to deal with the complications that come along with it.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,2287... has more info, but basically they expect that someone with AIDS will spend over $25,000 per year on treatment. I don't know about you, but there's no WAY that I could afford $25K on top of normal living expenses, especially if I couldn't work.