Paul Edmonds of California is fifth-known person in world confirmed to be in remission from both, says cancer institute

Doctors say a man in California who contracted blood cancer while living with HIV is in remission from both potentially fatal illnesses thanks to a treatment they are hailing as remarkable and encouraging.

Paul Edmonds is only the fifth-known person in the world confirmed to be in remission for both acute myelogenous leukemia and HIV, according to a recent news release from City of Hope, the national cancer institute that provided his medical care.

Edmonds, of Desert Hot Springs, California, underwent a treatment in which he received stem cells with a rare genetic mutation that makes people who have it resistant to acquiring HIV. The stem cell transplant came from a donor with the rare homozygous CCR5 delta mutation.