Charlie Sheen reveals he’s the ‘guinea pig’ for a revolutionary new AIDS drug
The former Two and a Half Men star opened about his health battle last November
CHARLIE Sheen has revealed he's the "guinea pig" for a new AIDS drug.
The 50 -year-old actor revealed in is HIV-positive during a sensational interview with Matt Lauer on the Today Show last November.
The former Two and a Half Men star revealed he was diagnosed back in 2011 after he went to the hospital believing he had a brain tumour.
He told Extra that he's the midst of a trial as part of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration study for a drug called PRO 140.
He said: "I just finished week eight and, as opposed to a daily cocktail of a combination of pills that have a lot of nasty side effects, this is one shot every week... I don't have the migraines, the stomach problems... I seriously believe this is the future of treatment for HIV."
Charlie was known for his hard partying ways but says he now focuses on his health.
He said: "Exercise, diet... don't go on benders anymore, don't drink as much.
"I just woke up one day and said, 'I deserve better'."
The actor said coming clean about his HIV diagnosis "set him free" from a "personal prison".
Charlie is now a brand ambassador for LELO REX condoms and hopes his involvement with the brand will raise awareness and "prevent a lot of s**t from happening".
The controversial star now wants to use his fame to encourage safe sex.
He told : "I guess certain things happen for a reason.
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"And maybe all of the stuff that I've done professionally, to garner such attention and fanfare and whatever else – good or bad – was sort of leading to a greater calling, a deeper calling, rather than fiction.
"I've usually made lemonade out of lemons, so this is another example of that."
Speaking about his decision to go public with his health battle, the former Hollywood party boy said he had no choice.
He said: "Going public? I had to. It was a personal prison.
"There were so many parasites and traitors, that were allies at one point, that saw it as an opportunity for their own gain.
"I just thought: The best way to put a stop to that and to be free and alleviate all this other crap I was dealing with was to come out.
"A lot of it was about shutting down a lot of the blackmail and all that: It was getting too expensive, and I was engaged in that to protect other professional interests and family stuff. And I just finally said, 'There's no other way out.' "
Charlie, who was previously married to actress Denise Richards, said he has had "nothing but love and support" since going public.
He said: "I didn't know how relieved I was going to feel afterwards, until I transitioned through that.
"There's such pressure, this sense of: The other shoe's gonna fall any minute now. You can't live like that.
The stress is incredible. Every time the phone would ring, like, 'Oh, jeez, it's another something.' So to have all that gone? What a relief."
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