Taylor Brennan
Period 3
November 2, 2012
Philadelphiaand AIDS
In the movie, Philadelphia, Tom Hanks plays the role of a homosexual man that fights for his life, both physically and professionally. Andrew Beckett (Tom Hanks) works at a prestigious law firm who is really moving up in the workplace. He finally catches a big break and is assigned a case and proposal. However, he starts noticing symptoms arising and leaves to go to the hospital. In the firm, people start to notice lesions appearing on his face and spread rumors about Andrew. Then, a coworker hides his proposal causing Beckett to get fired for job performance. In the meantime, Andrew finds out he has been diagnosed with AIDS, which during this time period was unknown and stereotypical. Furious about his firing, Andrew starts to look for lawyers that will help him sue the firm for wrongful termination.
Beckett’s decision to sue the firm caused great strides for him, and also posed great obstacles. No lawyer he went to would help him with his case. Denzel Washington plays one of these lawyers, and originally turns him down. Later, they run into each other in the movie and a friendship blossoms. Joe Miller (Denzel Washington) becomes Andrew’s lawyer and helps him fight for his justice. These court trials spanned over a couple of months, and in the meantime, the viewer gradually sees Andrew’s deteriation. He starts to get lesions on his stomach and on his body, he starts to lose his hair, he has diarrhea and coughing fits along with shortness of breath, he becomes dizzy, loses a considerable amount of weight, and eventually goes blind shortly followed by his own death. Right before Andrew’s demise, he wins the court case and receives about five million dollars! This movie showed Andrew’s battle through two main story lines, his fight for justice and his fight for survival, and gave the audience a better understanding of AIDS and what it encompasses.
In a nutshell, AIDS is a chronic, potentially life-threatening condition and greatly damages the immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). AIDS is mostly spread from sexual contact, blood transfusions, birth, sharing needles, and the swapping of bodily fluids. The amount of time spent for the virus to break down the body varies for each person. The virus can affect the person within a matter of months or over the years. As of right now, there is no cure for AIDS, but scientists are making great strides to try to help victims of this disease. Certain medications can be taken to slow down the affect of the virus, and have even reduced deaths in developing nations.
There are many symptoms relating to AIDS and people need to seek immediate professional help if they think they could have been affected with the disease. Something known as primary infection, within the first month of receiving the virus, can show symptoms within the first one or two months. These can include fever, muscle soreness, rashes, headaches, sore throat, mouth or genital ulcers, swollen lymph glands (mainly on the neck), some joint pain, night sweats, and diarrhea. Andrew starts to experience some of these symptoms fairly quickly, and this is when he goes to the hospital. As time passes and the immune system is being destroyed, mild infections start to arise. These can include fever, fatigue, swollen lymph nodes, diarrhea, shortness of breath, and weight loss. As more and more time passes and it finally progresses to AIDS some symptoms include soaking night sweats, shaking chills and fever, cough and shortness of breath, chronic diarrhea, white spots or lesions on tongue, mouth, neck, and body, headaches, unexplained fatigue, blurred vision, weight loss, skin rashes and bumps. To reiterate, someone can be infected with AIDS by sexual contact, blood transfusions, sharing needles, mother to child, and swapping of bodily fluids.
Many people do not think such a thing can happen to them. However, AIDS can so easily be transmitted. Some risk factors would include having unprotected sex. This is very risky without protection and can be greatly increased with an increase in partners. Some people could even develop another STD in conjunction with AIDS/HIV. Using intravenous drugs can easily have people swap needles and thus swapping infection.
Treatments have been provided that allow the slowing of the virus throughout the body. Since AIDS has no cure, the best scientists can do now is trying to slow down the process and prevent it from happening by teaching safe habits. Some treatments include Non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs). This disables a protein needed by the HIV process in order to replicate itself. Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) are another treatment option that are faulty versions of the building blocks necessary for the build up of HIV. In addition, Protease inhibitors (PIs) disable protease which is another protein needed by HIV in order to make copies of itself. Entry or fusion inhibitors block HIV’s entry into CD4 cells. Also, Integrase inhibitors work to disable integrase, a protein that HIV uses to insert its genetic material into CD4 cells. These are just a few of the many treatment options available to people infected with AIDS. Treatment needs to start immediately. Especially if one is pregnant, one is having severe symptoms, your CD4 count is under 500, the person has an HIV-related kidney disease, or if one is being treated for hepatitis B. Giving a treatment cannot be as easy as one thinks. There are many obstacles doctors need to face and overcome. Patients can have nausea, vomiting or diarrhea, abnormal heartbeats, shortness of breath, skin rashes, weakened bones, bone death (this is especially common in the hip joints). Treatment can be monitored by the CD4 cell count, and viral loads. These treatments do not get rid of HIV completely, but it can make it untraceable and very sensitive to scanners trying to detect it.
Learning that someone you know is diagnosed with AIDS can be completely devastating. Not only is this a life-threatening disease, but it also costs a lot of money and is hard for loved ones. Coming to terms with one’s illness is extremely difficult. Fortunately, there are many treatment centers, counselors, therapists, and health centers that can aid in the illness and its progression. If I were to find out a loved one I knew had AIDS, I would comfort them and stand by their side through the entire process. I would learn everything there is to know about AIDS and teach the infected one. I would pray for their safety and longevity. AIDS/HIV is such a scary disease. During the time period the movie takes place in, no one knew anything about AIDS. People thought it could be spread simply by shaking hands. Through the years and in the advancements in the medical field, so much has been learned and taught about this illness. I predict that a cure will be found for this in the future years. I think this will happen because the world is developing and growing everyday, and someone is bound to find a cure. I highly recommend this movie for anyone! This movie has taught my not only about AIDS, but also of the toll it takes on the person and the damage it can cause to them and their surroundings.
Bibliography
"AIDS/HIV." Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, 11
Aug. 2012. Web. 01 Nov. 2012. <
Philadelphia. Dir. Jonathan Demme. Perf. Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington. N.d