Some gay men – who stay HIV-negative after a lot of high-risk sex – begin to believe they might be immune. Daniel G. Taylor investigates.

“Jacob” says he probably took thousands of loads of cum, starting when he was 14 years old – from partners who were HIV-negative, HIV-positive, or unknown status – before he became HIV-positive 15 years later.

“There were some periods of weeks or months where I was getting fucked every day, two or three times a day,” Jacob says. “By the time I was in my twenties, I started topping as well and that was nearly always bareback. After that much activity, and a lot of it unsafe, you start to think, 'Am I immune?' or 'What the hell’s going on?'”

Surf bareback blogs and you’ll see other gay men who have had repeated exposure to HIV and stayed negative. Some come to believe they are immune. Is anyone immune to HIV?

Scientists believe a genetic defect that affects people from Northern Europe and Central Asia could be one way. Amongst these ethnic groups, 1% of people who have a mutated gene from each parent are, according to Wired, “virtually immune.”

People who receive a mutated gene from only one parent – 10-15% of Northern Europeans - have a greater resistance to HIV.

Access Excellence reports on work scientists have done with 20 female Gambian prostitutes, who despite exposure to HIV at least once a week for up to five years remain HIV-negative. They seem to stay that way because their bodies have a specific response to HIV-1 and HIV-2 peptides.

The idea that they could be immune, at the very least that unsafe sex is less risky than authorities say, seems to influence some gay men’s sex habits. The HIV Seroconversion Study from the Australian Centre in Sex Health and Society found 43.4% of men who became HIV-positive had continued to have unsafe sex after staying negative after  risky sex.

“I probably understand what they’re going through and thinking,” Jacob says. “But at the same time I’d probably think they’re not being realistic. Even at the time I was thinking I was immune, I was basically telling myself I’m an idiot, because it’s probably not likely.

“And even though I was getting exposed to [HIV] by fucking positive guys, and guys who probably had no idea what status they were because they didn’t get tested, it was just luck of the draw when it finally happened. I think that’s basically the case with everyone. It just depends if that’s the time it’s going to happen or not.”

“There’s no hard evidence to say some people are immune from being infected with HIV,” says Dr Tom Turnbull, from the O’Brien St General Practice. “The best way to be ‘immune’ is protected anal sex.”

While Jacob wouldn’t encourage condoms, on one point he agrees with Turnbull. “I’m not convinced that anyone’s immune. I think for anyone [who barebacks], it’s inevitable that [getting HIV] will happen.”

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