"It was terrifying. Not knowing why my patients were dying, what is was, or if it was contagious."
Gordon Crofoot MD is one of the Co-Founders of "Brazos Abiertos" (Fundación BAI. A.C.), and a specialist in HIV/AIDS. As a newly qualified doctor, he found himself in the middle of the maelstrom, as the virus swept through the World in the early 1980s. Fundación BAI's roving reporter, Mark Callum, met him in Mérida over a glass of chardonnay.
So, when did you come to be involved in treating HIV and AIDS?
I have been taking care of people with HIV in Houston for 37 years…before the word AIDS was even used - infact it was first used in June 1981. One day, in 1980, I was asked to see a 30 year old patient who looked like he had pneumonia. He subsequently died of pneumocystitis, which later became known as the "AIDS pneumonia". He was one of the first people in Houston to die of AIDS. Within a few months, another case came in with the same symptoms, and he died as well. So 2 deaths within 2 months meant that all of a sudden I found myself being regarded as an "expert" in this new unknown virus! This was before we even knew exactly what it was.
I had infact been seeing unusual cases in the 1970s. I gave it my own name, FVI (funny viral illness). It did indeed turn out to be a viral infection, but it was not funny at all. In 1977 I remember seeing a patient, who in retrospect, was probably one of the earliest cases, and he was discharged without us being able to diagnose his illness. (He died in 1988). It was terrifying at the time....to not have the answer to what it was we were dealing with. It was not until 1984 that we finally knew what caused it. Then we kept seeing more and more "worried well". The problem was that we had no test for it...for 4 years we were "blind". Also, we did not know if we were putting ourselves at risk, how contagious it was. Back then, T cell count tests cost 800 dollars and took 8 weeks to come back. And even then we didn’t know how reliable they were. So, one of the first things we realised was that we needed a cheap test, so we created our own! We used a diluted tetanus vaccine. and we injected a small amount to see how the patients´ immune system reacted. Nothing was written, we were in unknown territory and in a situation where we had to think outside the box....but at least we now had a quick basic test to help us.
How did the treatment change over time?
When I lecture, I have a slide showing all of the medications that we were using back then….and it has just ONE: Tylenol….for the fever! We heard that there were some effective anti-retroviral medicines that might help, but at that time it was illegal to bring them into the USA. We discovered that they were available in Mexico. So I organised school buses to go down there and I paid for grannies to smuggle small quantities back into the USA! This eventually led to a change in the law in the USA, for small amounts to be allowed in for personal use. "The Dallas Buyers Club", as seen in the recent movie, and other similar organizations, also had the same idea. I then worked with them to help my patients. 1989 was the worst year for deaths. I had a death every day and a half in my practice that year.
What was the big turning point?
The first effective medicines were approved around 1996, around the time of the Vancouver AIDS Conference. For the first time we had people becoming consistently "undetectable", although there were still side effects. So, all of a sudden we now had an effective treatment….I was so excited! Now, instead of telling my patients to prepare themselves for death…which had been the usual conversation, it went more like: "Guess what? We have some drugs that are going to shut this thing down…!" These were patients who had already prepared to meet their maker. They had given up their job, sold their life insurance policy, told their family to get the hell out and divested themselves of everything they owned! Now I am telling them they have a future after all! Their reaction: "OMG now I need to see a psychiatrist and I have to make up with my family again!" Since then we have refined the therapy, there are many less pills to take and we have well over 30 medicines in our arsenal.The latest thinking is that this is a treatable disease with a normal life expectancy and HIV positive patients can lead a normal life, including having their own children.
Gordon Crofoot's favorites:
ON MY IPOD - Light Classical.
HOBBIES - Genealogy, Photography.
RESTAURANT - La Tratto, Santa Lucia.
DRINK - Iced tea or chardonnay.
TRAVEL - Hong Kong.
BEACH - Life´s a beach, and then you die!
Gordon Crofoot is one of our socially responsible PLATINUM sponsors investing in the future of the people of the Yucatán.
For more about becoming one of our caring Sponsors please contact us.
Dr. Gordon Crofoot visiting the Yucatán in 2006
Where are you from? What´s the origin of the name CROFOOT - American Native Indian I presume?
I was born and raised north of Chicago. Actually, "Crofoot" is an old English name, originally spelt "Crowfoote". My ancestors were among the earliest wave of people to leave England looking for a better life in the New World and they settled in Conneticut in the 1600s. I recently discovered that one of my distant relatives was declared a witch and executed in Salem, Massachusetts!
You are one of the original founders of "Brazos Abiertos". How did that come about?
I had been an HIV specialist for a long time and I asked a friend, who was living in Mérida at the time, what the situation was like there. So he sent me a load of information and in 2006 I came to visit. I had asked to talk to people affected by HIV and when I arrived he had set up numerous meetings. The first morning I was thrown right into a Press Conference with the Secretary of Health for the Yucatán and it was all in Spanish! Luckily I had an interpreter. We also went to Campeche where I spoke at 2 medical schools. Shortly afterwards, we set up the non-profit.
Carrying out Free HIV tests with current Mexican Board President, Dr Narces Alcocer
Dr. Gordon Crofoot with Dr. Luc Montagnier, who discovered the HIV virus in 1984 in Paris
And you were involved in the first successful case in the Yucatán, of an HIV positive man fathering an HIV negative child?
Yes that was a very exciting moment. I met with them and counseled them and they asked if they could have children and I helped them plan it. So it was a planned pregnancy and they now have a 5 year old healthy, HIV negative child.
You are doing trails for a drug company for a new anti-retroviral drug? How is that going?
I have done research on every HIV drug that has been approved since we worked on AZT back in 1986. Gilead Sciences chose us as one of its top ten partners and for 10 years we have been running human trials. We have recently been working on a new version of "Truvada", already a highly used anti-retroviral drug. The newer version has fewer side effects and is more effective.
So what are the very latest developments in the treatment of HIV?
The WHO (World Health Organization) has recently stated that everyone with HIV should be treated immediately, because the medicines are so effective. This is HUGE. This will decrease the spread of the virus and it is critical that we control it in this way.
The WHO have also just said that we should be pro active and that preventative medicine should be used. So one pill once a day for those who are identified as high risk. This is known as PREP - Pre-exposure prophylaxis.
How important are Fundación BAI´s programs in this context?
Fundación BAI is doing exactly what is being recommended. The focus is on Prevention, more than ever. I helped found BAI in order to Educate, Prevent and Care. With one new case of HIV or AIDS reported in the Yucatan EVERY DAY last year, this strategy is vital and no-one does it like BAI does. HIV has not gone away, and people are still suffering terribly because of it. In particular, BAI´s Peer to Peer Education program, coupled with their free HIV testing events and tests available at their office, are crucially important in combatting the continued spread of the virus. Also, when BAI identifies someone as HIV positive, they offer support including linkage to Care, so BAI still has a vital role to play in helping people. The younger generation have not seen what I saw, and can easily become complacent, so is it really important that this work continues.
Where do you see us in 10 years time? Will we have a vaccine?
Maybe. That’s another trial...
…let’s hope so!
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Going into the office and seeing patients that I have taken care of for 25 years, who should have died, and who are now talking about retiring. They are worried about grey hair and cataracts! This fills me with joy. Sometimes I have to remind them that in 1992 they were on a ventilator in the emergency room and almost died! I still see new patients with HIV every day and I feel I now have sufficient experience of this virus, having seen it evolve, and It is very rewarding for me to be able to tell someone who has been newly diagnosed that they will live a long and happy life.
What do you most love about spending time in Mérida?
It's such a different environment to the USA. I love stepping through into this world. The people are so nice and the way of life is relaxed. I am very proud of the programs that BAI are doing here and the people involved in it. I enjoy seeing all the very impressive things that Dr. Carlos Cabrera and his tireless team of volunteers are doing with the organization we started back in 2006.
You are very generous with your time supporting Fundación BAI, what motivates you to help?
Translating what I have learned in my practice in the USA to Mexico is very rewarding. There are always new things to impart. New developments to bring to help those less fortunate than ourselves.
How do you relax?
Photography.
ONE thing about you that people might not know?
That I used to breed championship doberman pinschers.
What were the careers of your Grandfathers?
On my father's side my grandfather made blueprints of architectural drawings and on my mother's side he was a Carpenter.
If there was ONE thing in the World that you could change, what would it be?
To educate people around the World how to respond to HIV, whether they are infected or uninfected. The Yucatán has some pretty good programs, unfortunately, not all the world is so lucky. And if you will allow me number TWO - to see a cure!
Any future plans you can share with our Fundacion BAI readers?
My partner and I are renovating an old property in Centro, so that I can spend more time in Mérida with the people I love.