UCSD - University of California - San Diego

05/14/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/14/2026 09:17

The Last Gift: Turning Life’s Final Chapter Into Hope for an HIV Cure

Published Date

May 14, 2026

Article Content

Jim Dunn was generous. He was intelligent. He was kind. He was gentle. And he would do almost anything he could to help others. Even after his death on December 30, 2024, Jim's generosity and compassion continue.

Jim and his wife, Susan Dickerson, were active participants in the Last Gift Study at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine. The tissue-donation research study aims to understand the behavior of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) throughout the body.

"We know that HIV persists in tissues throughout the body, including the brain, lymph nodes, gut and other organs," said Sara Gianella Weibel, MD, professor of medicine, "Through the Last Gift Study, participants volunteer to donate their tissues after death through a rapid research autopsy."

The rapid autopsy is performed within approximately six hours after death. If too much time passes, tissues begin to degrade and cells die, meaning critical biological information can be lost, explained Gianella Weibel.

Sara Gianella Weibel, MD

"By performing the autopsy quickly, we can preserve viable cells, intact RNA and the natural architecture of tissues," she said. "This allows researchers to study exactly where HIV is hiding in the body, which cells harbor the virus and how infected cells interact with the surrounding tissue environment. It provides a level of biological detail that cannot be obtained through blood samples or small biopsies."

Jim lived with HIV/AIDS for more than two decades and was deeply engaged in advocacy and research throughout his life. He and Susan were active in the UC San Diego AntiViral Research Center Community Advisory Board, which provides community members opportunities to learn about ongoing HIV research and clinical research studies.

"Jim felt that he wouldn't have been able to live as long as he did if it hadn't been for the gay community in the 1980s advocating for research," said Susan. "Because of their activism, Jim wanted to give as much of himself as possible to repay their sacrifices. I cannot even tell you how many studies he joined over the last 23 years. He was so committed to helping others."

Advancing HIV cure science

Davey Smith, MD

The Last Gift Study was established in 2017 by Davey Smith, MD, professor of medicine and the Florence Seeley Riford Chair in AIDS Research at the School of Medicine. The idea grew from a long-term patient of Smith's who participated in research studies since he was first diagnosed with HIV in the late 1980's. The patient understood that he benefited from research when he started highly active antiretroviral therapy in 1996 and went on to live another 18 years. When he was dying of pancreatic cancer in 2014, he expressed interest in continuing to volunteer for research, but he was frustrated to find out that it was not possible for him to participate because he was considered too "vulnerable" for research studies. After his patient died, Smith began to think of ways that people could contribute to HIV research at the end of their lives. This led to the creation of the Last Gift Study.

"If we want to cure HIV, we need to better understand it," said Smith, who is also assistant vice chancellor for clinical and translational research in the Health Sciences and director of the Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute. "The Last Gift Study grew out of conversations between HIV advocates, scientists, clinicians and community members about how people nearing the end of life might want to contribute to research in a meaningful way."

It took nearly two years to secure funding and approval for the study, which is supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, in collaboration with the UC San Diego HIV Neurobehavioral Research Program, the UC San Diego AntiViral Research Center, and the UC San Diego California NeuroAIDS Tissue Network.

Hope for a cure

Since launch, the Last Gift Study has enrolled more than 60 participants and completed more than 40 rapid autopsies, creating an extraordinary resource for HIV research.

One key finding from the study is that HIV can remain hidden in many parts of the body even when medications have fully suppressed it for years. The virus can hide in tissue niches that make it harder to eliminate with current treatments. It may also move between different parts of the body, possibly carried by infected immune cells-a kind of biological "Trojan horse."

"Using tissues from Last Gift participants, we were able to provide some of the first direct evidence that the brain can harbor replication-competent HIV, confirming that the central nervous system can serve as a true viral reservoir," said Gianella Weibel. "Because these tissues are collected rapidly after death, they offer an unparalleled resource for researchers worldwide to study living cells and intact environments that make new HIV cure strategies possible."

Creating meaning through connection

Related content

Hear from Jim In his Own Words

The Last Gift: Jim's Courage, Our Hope is a documentary film that shares a brief portion of Jim Dunn and Susan Dickerson's journey with the Last Gift Study.

The film has been nominated for an Emmy Award from the Pacific Southwest chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. View the film to learn about the program through Jim and Susan's perspective.

"Everything about this study is centered on strong community input, participant autonomy and dignity," said Gianella Weibel. "Participants often tell us that being part of the study gives them a sense of purpose and legacy-that even at the end of life they can contribute to science and help future generations. Our research has also shown that many participants experience improvements in quality of life after enrolling. For some, contributing to something meaningful provides empowerment, closure and connection."

Participants may enroll in the study if they have HIV and a secondary life-limiting illness. Secondary illnesses include, but are not limited to, cancer, neurological conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) an end-stage organ disease, or other illness that leads to death. They must also have a loved one or next of kin who can support the process and maintain close contact with the study's outreach team.

"We have to have buy-in and close communication with relatives because we rely on them to notify us as participants near the end of life," said Gianella Weibel. "We have teams available 24/7 so that when the time comes, we can mobilize quickly for the autopsy."

Jim Dunn's family and Last Gift Study team members became extended family over the years.

Because timing is critical, family support is essential. For Susan, supporting and honoring Jim's wishes was easy.

"The people we met over the last 20 years are so devoted to finding a cure," she said. "Jim wanted to help them in any way possible. He lived for so many years with HIV/AIDS and multiple cancers on top of it. The people on our care teams and in the study became family. We're still in touch. I encourage anyone who can participate to reach out and learn more. Jim will live on forever through this study, and that is an incredible gift of hope."

The Last Gift Study is a reminder that even in life's final moments, the choice to give can help guide others forward and strengthen the hope for a cure.

UCSD - University of California - San Diego published this content on May 14, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on May 14, 2026 at 15:17 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]