After being first picked in the 1979 NBA draft, Magic Johnson had an amazing career with the Lakers, leading them to 5 NBA Championships, racking up 3 MVP awards, and becoming an all-time leader in average a**ists per game. Johnson was on top of the world until his 12 year career came to a screeching halt in 1991. This is when he announced to the world that he was diagnosed with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) and would be retiring immediately. There is no way of knowing how many lives Magic Johnson indirectly saved after that famous press conference (reportedly, the number of people that got an HIV test in just NYC rose by 60% within a month of Magic's announcement). He might be the all-time a**ist leader in the HIV/AIDS activism game too.
The HIV virus was not identified until 1983 and without much knowledge about the disease at that time, it spread fast as f*ck (pun intended). HIV is commonly transmitted through unprotected s**, IV drug use, and from infected mothers to their unborn babies. Magic Johnson admitted to having multiple s**ual partners during his playing career, which put him at high risk for getting the virus. The reason HIV is so dangerous is because it attacks the immune system, which is the body's “D” in boxing out enemies like viruses. The immune system usually fights off viruses by recognizing them as “opponents” and sending defenders (called white blood cells) to attack them. Once the virus gets k**ed, the immune system “watches film” so it can run a better/faster defense if them viruses show up again. HIV is crafty with it though- it punks the immune system into thinking it's one of them. When the immune system doesn't play defense, HIV launches a full-court press, destroying that immune system. Cold blooded. This makes people with the virus get sick easier, and without a healthy immune squad, even chump colds and stomach bugs are a big deal. HIV is what causes AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome). When a patient's white blood cell count drops low enough, they progress to developing full-blown AIDS, which is characterized by multiple horrible infections throughout the body.
Fortunately, in the 30+ years since HIV was first discovered, huge moves have been made in developing medications that step the immune system up and work to stop the blowout HIV tries to get on the body. Newer d** have been designed to delay the progression to full-blown AIDS, creating the opportunity for infected individuals to live longer and healthier lives. At 55, Magic Johnson is a testament to the power of these d** as he continues to be his extremely successful. After posting up on a whole AIDS epidemic with his celebrity influence, time, and money, Magic was a driving force in the HIV/AIDS research movement that led to discovering those powerful d**. Magic indeed.