When Los Angeles Lakers great Magic Johnson announced his retirement in 1991 because he was HIV positive, the prevailing wisdom at the time was he had been handed a death sentence.
Very little research had been done on HIV or AIDS in the 10 years since the pathogen had been identified, and everyone expected him to die within 5-10 years once it had ravaged his immune system.
But in the years that followed, major breakthroughs were made in the fight against the disease. They have helped Johnson get through his 30s, 40s, 50s and now 60s in relatively good health.
On a recent episode of the daytime talk show “The View,” the maestro of Showtime said two of the nation’s top doctors and experts on HIV and immunology, Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. David Ho, helped keep him healthy despite his HIV infection.
Via The Recount:
“While talking to the talk show co-host, Joy Behar, Johnson said he should thank Dr. Fauci and Dr. Ho for helping him to be where he is now. They helped him understand the importance of the medication he was taking and guided him through the difficult phase in his life.
“Johnson said that both Dr. Fauci and Dr. Ho said, ‘I have to be comfortable with my new status, make sure I kept a positive attitude, and keep working out. And so, I’ve been doing that. Here I am 30 years later.'”
Today, of course, Fauci has been leading the fight against another dangerous virus, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
He has been lauded for his efforts as a public servant to help keep the nation safe as it looks to move past the pandemic and into some sort of new normal.
Of course, Fauci has also been the subject of misinformation and conspiracy theories from COVID-deniers and anti-vaxxers.
But Johnson said having experts such as him on his side, as well as the support he received from his family and the Lakers organization, helped him get through perhaps the darkest hour of his life and come out of it on the other side in one piece.
