A “functional cure” for one Mississippi child and new recommendations from the USPSTF may lead to free, nationwide HIV screening.

Early screening saves lives, and new evidence reveals miraculous potential in the early identification of HIV infections.

This week, researchers announced the first case of a “functional cure” for HIV—meaning that the virus is in remission without the on-going use of medications. A child born more than two years ago in Mississippi to a mother who did not know she was HIV-positive until the time of delivery was treated with antiretroviral drugs within the first few days of life.

The child was treated for ten months and now shows no signs of HIV infection, even after stopping antiretroviral medication, according to findings presented at the Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections in Atlanta.

“We believe this is the first well-documented case of a [functional] cure,” said lead study author Dr. Deborah Persaud, associate professor of pediatrics at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, in a statement. “For us this is a very exciting finding. By treating a baby very early [we may be able to] prevent viral reservoirs or cells that stay around for the lifetime of an infected person.”

Typically, expectant mothers with HIV take medication that can almost eliminate the chance that the virus will be passed on to the child. If the current “cure” can be replicated in a formal study setting, early and aggressive treatment could be used help those children who are infected at birth, especially in developing nations.