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Positively Positive - Living with HIV/AIDS:
HIV/AIDS News Archive - August 2024
In a ring: Newfound security for African women against HIV
August 31 2024 - By PAULINE KAIRU - The EastAfrican- Women in the region will soon have access to free vaginal rings designed to prevent HIV infection. The dapivirine vaginal ring, commonly known as the DapiRing, is a long-acting HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) option for women that has received regulatory approval in 11 Eastern and Southern Africa countries.
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'It is a risk, but don't freak out': Experts warn people to protect themselves amid a rise in mosquito-borne diseases
Aug 31, 2024 - By Elizabeth Payne - OTTAWA CITIZEN - Chennai Mayor R. Priya took part in the intensive HIV/AIDS and STD awareness campaign at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium on Friday. She participated in a human chain demonstration with college students as a part of the awareness drive and distributed brochures on sexually transmitted diseases. Later, she awarded medals to Red Ribbon Marathon winners.
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New research looks to improve lives of Indigenous people with HIV
August 31, 2024 - By Allison Bamford - CTV National News - A Saskatchewan social work professor hopes new research can improve the lives of Indigenous people living with HIV in a province with the highest rate of infection.
Over the last decade, Andrew Eaton, a professor at the University of Regina, has been developing a cognitive remediation group therapy (CRGT) program for people living with HIV.
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Childhood HIV Vaccination Strategy Shows Promise in Study
August 30, 2024 - Weill Cornell Medicine - Research at Weill Cornell Medicine suggests that childhood immunization against HIV could one day provide protection before risk of contracting this potentially fatal infection dramatically increases in adolescence.
The study, published Aug. 30 in Science Immunology, demonstrated that a series of six vaccinations containing a modified protein from the surface of HIV particles stimulated initial steps of a potent immune response in young non-human primates. This difficult-to-achieve response represents an important step toward providing full and potentially life-long protection against the virus, the researchers say.
Immunizing young children, rather than adults, makes sense because risk factors for HIV infection rise steeply when adolescents become sexually active, according to senior author Dr. Sallie Permar, the Nancy C. Paduano Professor in Pediatrics and chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medicine.
Global Anti-Infective Drugs Market is Projected to Cross ~USD 175 Billion by 2030 | DelveInsight
LAS VEGAS, Aug. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- DelveInsight - The anti-infective drug market is seeing strong growth due to multiple interrelated factors. One key driver is the rising incidence of specific infectious diseases, including healthcare-associated infections, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and respiratory infections. These health issues present major challenges worldwide, prompting healthcare systems to focus on finding effective treatments. At the same time, there is a surge in research, development, and clinical trials aimed at creating new therapies and improving the effectiveness of current drugs.
DelveInsight's Anti-Infective Drugs Market Insights report provides the current and forecast market analysis, individual leading anti-infective drugs companies' market shares, challenges, anti-infective drugs market drivers, barriers, trends, and key market anti-infective drugs companies in the market.
SF AIDS agency ends direct services as disparity seen in local, federal new Latino HIV diagnoses
August 30, 2024 - by John Ferrannini - Bay Area Reporter - A longtime San Francisco Latino HIV/AIDS nonprofit is hanging on by a thread and has stopped providing direct services after losing city funding at the end of the last budget year. Meanwhile, preliminary data from city health officials shows the number of new HIV diagnoses among Latino men was down in 2023 in contrast to rising rates nationally.
Due to its funding loss AGUILAS has had to lay off all its employees except Executive Director Eduardo Morales, Ph.D., a gay man, and one other person, Morales told the Bay Area Reporter. It comes as recent public health reports show Latinos represent an outsize share of new federal HIV diagnoses but, in San Francisco, the community saw a dramatic decrease of 46% in new cases last year over 2022 figures.
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Granny advocates take to the Chief William Commanda Bridge for HIV/AIDS
AUGUST 30, 2024 - By Charlie Senack - Kitchissippi Times - Ottawa grannies will be crossing the Chief William Commanda Bridge on Sept. 8 to raise awareness for the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Falling on National Grandparents Day, the walk is being organized by the Ottawa chapter of volunteer group One World Grannies. The group is just one in a network of “gran groups” in the Ottawa-Gatineau Region that are working to support and
bring awareness to the ongoing HIV/AIDS pandemic, making up the global Grandmothers Advocacy Network.
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Doctors struggle to treat dual HIV/AIDS, mpox threats
30 August, 2024 -Esther Githui-Ewart - Voice of America (VOA) - Health experts in the Democratic Republic of Congo are sounding the alarm about the impact of the mpox outbreak among women and children living with HIV/AIDS, especially those in and around conflict zones. VOA’s Esther Githui-Ewart spoke with Dr. John Ditekemena, the DRC’s Country Director for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation about the mpox spread in Congo and available treatments of the virus as well as about the spread of HIV/AIDS among women who are victims of sexual violence.
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From G.R.I.D. to AIDS & COVID-19 to Long-COVID: Naming and Defining Biological Threats
August 29, 2024 - Scholars Junction - Mississippi State University Institutional Repository - This article uses the history of the early U.S. case definition of AIDS to question the imperatives in the newly developed Long-COVID (LC) definition. Doing so allows us to think through the role of case definitions in producing meaning in our world and to consider what we can learn about the politics of knowledge creation.
Japanese government considers taking precautions against mpox
Aug 29, 2024 - By Francis Tang - The Japan Times - Japan’s health ministry has approved a drug used to treat HIV for prevention purposes as well, U.S. drugmaker Gilead Sciences announced on Wednesday, marking the first time that such medication has been green-lit for use as preexposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in the country.
The drug, known by its brand name Truvada, is also the first drug approved in Japan to both treat and prevent HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
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New findings on TB could change how we treat inflammatory disorders
AUGUST 28, 2024 - The Rockefeller University - Tuberculosis is a confounding scourge. It’s the leading cause of death from infectious disease in the world, and yet it’s estimated that those deaths represent perhaps 5% of infections with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Antibiotics can take credit for saving the lives of some of those with Mtb, but a chasm nevertheless persists between the prevalence of infection and the targeted severity of its impact. A growing body of evidence suggests genetic vulnerabilities to TB account for that gap.
Now researchers from The Rockefeller University have found another rare mutation that leaves its carriers much more likely to become ill with TB—but, curiously, not with other infectious diseases. This finding, recently published in Nature, may upend long held assumptions about the immune system.
Dr. Julio Montaner receives King Charles III Coronation Medal
August 27, 2024 - Bristish Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) -On August 27, 2024, in a joint ceremony with the Lieutenant Governor of BC, BC Premier David Eby presented 64 distinguished British Columbians with the King Charles III Coronation Medal which included BC-CfE Executive Director & Physician-in-Chief Dr. Julio Montaner.
This work becomes even more important in the midst of global challenges. It is for this reason that the BC-CfE laboratory is currently assisting the Ukraine Ministry of Health with its representative national HIV drug resistance survey.
In recognition of the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III on May 6, 2023, the King Charles III Coronation Medal was created to recognize Canadians who have made significant contributions to the country, a province, territory, region, or community, or achieved abroad in a way that brought credit to Canada.
Frailty Is an Issue for Aging People With HIV. Here’s How To Fight It
Aug 27, 2024 - By Tim Murphy - TheBody - Bob Leahy, 77, was diagnosed with HIV in 1993. By his mid-70s, the Ontario native had long ago stopped exercising. “I’d been a gym rat a long time ago, but I’d given that up,” he tells TheBody. He still ate well, partly to control his diabetes, but he endured peripheral neuropathy in his feet—an often chronic, sometimes painful, pins-and-needles numbness common among veterans of early HIV medications, which caused it.
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Thailand confirms Asia’s first known case of more contagious and deadlier version of mpox
Aug 27, 2024 - By Du Qiongfang - Global Times - Thailand has confirmed Asia's first known case of a more contagious and potentially deadlier version of the mpox virus with its transmission modes changed.
Experts noted that children are more likely to be infected in this outbreak due to their relatively weaker immune systems.
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PEPFAR Increases Access and Improves Safety of HIV Medicines in Angola
August 27, 2024 - United States Agency for International Development - People living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) rely on regular access to medication (known as antiretrovirals) to keep the HIV virus in their blood under control.
In Angola, the Ministry of Health's National Institute in the Fight against AIDS (INLS) works hard to ensure that there is enough HIV medication in health facilities where people living with HIV receive treatment.
Africa’s mpox outbreaks due to decades of neglect, experts say
August 27, 2024 - By Maria Cheng -The Associated Press - Global News - The rising mpox outbreaks in Africa that triggered the World Health Organization’s emergency declaration are largely the result of decades of neglect and the global community’s inability to stop sporadic epidemics among a population with little immunity against the smallpox-related disease, leading African scientists said Tuesday.
According to Dr. Dimie Ogoina, who chaired WHO’s mpox emergency committee, negligence had led to a new, more transmissible version of the virus emerging in countries with few resources to stop outbreaks.
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U of R professor aims to Indigenize cognitive therapy for people with HIV
Aug 26, 2024 - Angela Amato - Regina Leader Post - "It's incredibly important that the approach and the way you evaluate it is done in a culturally sensitive manner, especially when working with groups that have faced a lot of marginalization or discrimination."
With Saskatchewan having the highest rate of HIV diagnosis in the country, a University of Regina professor is working to mitigate the cognitive challenges that people living with the virus develop later in life.
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What Enables Herpes Simplex Virus To Become Impervious to Drugs?
Newswise - 26 August 2024 - by Harvard Medical School - Research pinpoints key to the cold sore virus’s ability to evade treatment, offering broader clues on antiviral drug resistance
All organisms – from fungi to mammals – have the capacity to evolve and adapt to their environments. But viruses are master shapeshifters with an ability to mutate greater than any other organism. As a result, they can evade treatments or acquire resistance to once-effective antiviral medications.
Working with herpes simplex virus (HSV), a new study led by Harvard Medical School researchers sheds light on one of the ways in which the virus becomes resistant to treatment, a problem that could be particularly challenging among people with compromised immune function, including those receiving immune-suppressive treatment and those born with immune deficiencies.
Global strategic preparedness and response plan launched by WHO to contain mpox outbreak
Geneva - 26 August 2024 - World Health Organization (WHO) - The World Health Organization (WHO) today launched a global Strategic Preparedness and Response Plan to stop outbreaks of human-to-human transmission of mpox through coordinated global, regional, and national efforts. This follows the declaration of a public health emergency of international concern by the WHO Director-General on 14 August.
SA’s HIV/AIDS ‘injustice’ sparks academic’s activism
26 August 2024 - Story Niémah Davids - University of Cape Town News - A champion of the people, an HIV/AIDS activist, an antiretroviral (ARV) treatment crusader, and a clinician with outstanding scientific prowess who remains committed to lessening the impact of HIV through passion and compassion for humanity – those were just some of the words used to describe the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Professor Catherine Orrell. An HIV clinician, clinical pharmacologist and the clinical lead for the Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation Centre for Adherence and Therapeutics, she delivered her inaugural lecture – marking her ascent to full professor – on Thursday, 22 August.
Professor Orrell’s hybrid lecture was titled “Towards effective HIV treatment in South Africa – injustice, clinical pharmacology and adherence”. She condensed years of work into a gripping presentation that touched on South Africa’s dark HIV/AIDS denialism past, the work on the frontline to ensure people living with HIV remain ARV-treatment compliant, and shared that despite giant strides, the stigma of HIV/AIDS still exists.
Mpox: African countries have beaten disease outbreaks before – here’s what it takes
August 24, 2024 - The Conversation - Barely over a year after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared that mpox was no longer a public health issue of international concern, it is back in the news. This time with a diversity of variants, new modes of transmission and new populations infected.
In this interview, Oyewale Tomori, a professor of virology, explains why the declaration of mpox as a global public health emergency is connected with the failure of African governments to properly fund disease surveillance activities and create an environment for their deeply experienced health workers to function. He also sheds light on what it takes to stop a disease outbreak.
2024 Fall BC-CfE Update: Taking the Pulse of the Global HIV/AIDS Pandemic
August 23, 2024 - Bristish Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (BC-CfE) - THE EVENT WILL TAKE PLACE:
Friday, September 20, 2024 12:00 pm to 5:15 pm (networking lunch is 11:00 am with program beginning at 12:00 pm)
Pavilion Ballroom - North Tower - Sheraton Wall Centre Hotel
1088 Burrard Street, Vancouver, BC
PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED AND IS NOW OPEN
We are pleased to invite you to attend the 2024 Fall BC-CfE Update on the global HIV/AIDS pandemic. The Update will address the status of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic with an emphasis on regional efforts to accelerate epidemic control.
Mpox: What this infectious disease physician wants you to know
August 22, 2024 - By Blake Dillon - McMaster University - The World Health Organization recently declared mpox a “public health emergency of international concern” amidst widespread outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and other parts of Africa.
The declaration comes following the emergence of a new, more dangerous variant, which has since also been reported in Sweden. Experts fear that further spread may soon be on the horizon.
“We are very likely only seeing the tip of the iceberg,” says Zain Chagla, an associate professor in McMaster University’s Department of Medicine and a member of the Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research.
FACT SHEET: United States Response to the Clade I Mpox Outbreak in Several African Countries
August 22, 2024 - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) -
On August 14, 2024, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern about the upsurge of mpox cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and a growing number of countries in Africa. This announcement followed the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention's (Africa CDC) declaration of a Public Health Emergency of Continental Security on August 13. The significant increase of clade I mpox cases, in both endemic countries (those that have previously had mpox outbreaks) and non-endemic countries (those that have historically not reported mpox outbreaks), threatens the health security of the region, as well as countries outside Africa. In addition, clade I mpox has a newer sub-clade referred to as clade Ib. Both clade Ia and clade Ib are circulating in DRC and have been detected in neighboring countries and in Sweden and Thailand (one case each associated with travel to Africa with known clade I cases).
Chlamydia can infect gastrointestinal epithelial cells in the lab, supporting the theory that the bacterium can form a reservoir in the human gut
August 22, 2024 - PLOS Pathogens - Infection of human organoids supports an intestinal niche for Chlamydia trachomatis
LJI scientists lead new mpox research
LA JOLLA, CA - August 22, 2024 - by Madeline McCurry-Schmidt - La Jolla Institute for Immunology - San Diego scientists investigate how immune cells combat rapidly spreading mpox strain
Scientists at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) are investigating how the mutated “clade 1” mpox virus may affect children and older patients—and how new vaccines can help the body fight back. This research may provide important insights for vaccine and therapeutic use as health officials combat the growing mpox outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo and more than a dozen African countries.
The World Health Organization has declared the clade I mpox outbreak a “public health emergency of international concern,” and officials have confirmed that a patient in Sweden is being treated for this new mpox strain. The patient contracted the virus when traveling in Africa.
Mpox is now a global public health emergency. Do I need to worry?
Aug 22, 2024 - By Amina Zafar - CBC News - Doctors say risks to most people in countries without an outbreak are low. But there are precautions to take
The declaration of mpox as a public health emergency of international concern following years of precautions against COVID-19 has many people worried.
Here are some answers from Canadian infectious disease specialists and public health authorities on what this all means.
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Village Lab researches Indigenous experiences of HIV
August 22, 2024 - By Rhea Bhalla -The Manitoban - Exploring the intersections of health and social sciences
At the U of M’s Village Lab, which explores the intersections of health and social sciences with a focus on marginalized communities, the Gigii-Bapiimin study examined the impact of COVID-19 on Indigenous people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).
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BioVaxys DPX-Based Vaccines Exhibit Robust Efficacy Across Multiple Infectious Diseases
VANCOUVER, BC, Aug. 22, 2024 /PRNewswire - BioVaxys Technology Corp. - BioVaxys Technology Corp. (CSE: BIOV) (FRA: 5LB) (OTCQB: BVAXF) ("BioVaxys" or the "Company") highlights the potential of its novel lipid-in-oil delivery platform, DPX™, across multiple infectious disease studies and announces its plans for partnering and further development.
BioVaxys' DPX™ technology ("DPX") is a patented delivery platform that can incorporate a range of bioactive molecules to produce targeted, long-lasting immune responses enabled by various formulated components. The DPX platform facilitates antigen delivery to regional lymph nodes and has been demonstrated to induce robust and durable T cell and B cell responses in pre-clinical and clinical studies for both cancer and infectious disease.
Conversations from the 2024 National Ryan White Conference (Videos)
August 21, 2024 - HIV.gov - As the 2024 National Ryan White Conference on HIV Care and Treatment (2024 NRWC) got underway yesterday, HIV.gov spoke with Laura Cheever, MD, ScM, about the conference and the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program’s 2030 vision and also with Michael Kharfen about empowering communities, one of the conference’s themes. Dr. Cheever is the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) Associate Administrator for the HIV/AIDS Bureau (HAB), which administers the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program. Michael is the Director of HAB’s Division of Policy and Data.
People with HIV cannot be categorically barred from joining the military, judge rules
August 21, 2024 - By Brooke Sopelsa and Benjamin Ryan - NBC News - The ruling strikes down the last remaining policy preventing asymptomatic HIV-positive people from military enlistment, service and promotion.
Americans with well-treated HIV can no longer be barred from enlisting in the U.S. military, a federal judge ruled Tuesday, striking down the Pentagon’s last remaining policy limiting the service of those with the virus.
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Sex worker study brings effective gonorrhoea vaccine step closer
21 August 2024 - The University of Manchester - A ground-breaking study involving Kenyan sex workers has shone a light into the immune response to gonorrhoea, paving the way for more effective vaccines.
Carried out by scientists at the Universities of Manchester and Oxford working in collaboration with the KEMRI/Wellcome Trust Unity in Kenya, the study is published in the journal Nature Communications and funded by the Wellcome Trust.
The findings come amid recent reports showing Gonorrhoea - a sexually transmitted disease - is becoming increasingly resistant to antibiotics and could become untreatable in the future.
Miami CFAR Celebrates 10 Years of Continuous State Funding
August 19, 2024 - By: Joey Garcia - University of Miami - The state of Florida reaffirmed its commitment to the Miami Center for AIDS Research with a $1 million check presented by State Senator Ana Maria Rodriguez and Miami-Dade County Commissioner Rene Garcia.
Since 2014, the HIV and Emerging Infectious Diseases Institute (HEIDI) and the Center for AIDS Research (CFAR) at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine has secured nearly $10 million in state funding to advance HIV/AIDS research.
The state’s ongoing commitment was reaffirmed Friday, August 16, when Mario Stevenson, Ph.D., director of HEIDI and professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the Miller School, was presented with a $1 million check by State Senator Ana Maria Rodriguez and former senator, now Miami-Dade County Commissioner, Rene Garcia.
Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
August 19, 2024 by amberpadilla - Virginia Department of Health - Virginia.gov - If you explore the AIDSVu map, an interactive map that illustrates HIV/AIDS data around the U.S., you might notice something startling: the areas with the highest rates of people living with AIDS tend to be clustered in the South.
Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day takes place on August 20 and highlights the importance of recognizing the factors that might cause higher HIV rates in the Southern U.S. Researchers say that many things—including social determinants of health—contribute to these rates. For example, communities in the South are often more spread out with less public transportation. It can be hard to reach a doctor’s office regularly to receive HIV prevention medication or other medical services.
Current HIV prevention medication users often stigmatize other PrEP users as ‘promiscuous’
CHICAGO - 19-August-2024 - Northwestern Now - Northwestern University - Public health campaigns for Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) should focus on sex-positive messaging
Public health messaging that drives stigma around Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP), a medication that can reduce HIV risk by up to 99%, appears to play a role in uptake of the medication. While the potential mismarketing of the drug is well-understood and has been studied extensively, few studies have examined factors associated with the perception of stigma among PrEP users.
A new study conducted by scientists at Northwestern University found that among PrEP users, many fear using PrEP puts them at risk of discrimination, even when they know other people who use the medication.
The study, published Aug. 16 in the journal Sexes, speculates about causes for self- stigma and recommends mitigation strategies to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which aims to reduce new HIV infections in the United States by 90% by 2030.
Phil Donahue Was the First TV Host to Feature Someone with AIDS — All About the Late tar’s Groundbreaking Moment
August 19, 2024 - By Vanessa Etienne - PEOPLE - Remembering Phil Donahue’s groundbreaking talk show following his death on Sunday, Aug. 18
Throughout Phil Donahue’s career, the daytime TV veteran was known for how groundbreaking his talk show was.
Among his many pioneering moments, the late star was the first TV host to feature a person living with AIDS on The Phil Donahue Show — which was renamed Donahue in 1974.
The episode aired in 1982, when the number of AIDS cases was only in the hundreds.
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15,000 people tested positive for HIV in South Carolina
CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - August 19, 2024 - South Carolina’s Department of Public Health says almost 15,000 people, including children and teens, are living with HIV infection or AIDS in the state.
The spokesperson for Palmetto Community Care, an organization that offers free HIV testing, says eight out of the top ten states or U.S. territories of new HIV diagnoses per 100,000 people are considered to be in the Deep South.
South Carolina is one of them.
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Meth addiction, HIV and a struggling health system are causing a perfect storm in Fiji
August 18, 2024 - The Conversation - Like many Pacific states that rely on tourism, Fiji had a hard time during the main pandemic years. But as tourism recovers, another crisis threatens the island nation’s stability – one fuelled by rising methamphetamine addiction.
Driven by foreign drug cartels using Fiji as a staging post for operations in New Zealand and Australia, the drug has also spread into local communities. In turn, it has fuelled a surge in HIV infections and put extra burdens on stretched health and justice sectors.
Japanese government considers taking precautions against mpox
Aug 18, 2024 -The Japan Times - Government officials considered taking action against mpox on Friday, following the World Health Organization's declaration earlier that week of a public health emergency due to outbreaks in Africa.
The officials reviewed strategies for response, including methods for gathering and sharing information and preparing the medical care system.
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Statement by His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa, the African Union Champion on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness, and Response (PPPR) on the situation of Mpox outbreak in Africa
17 August 2024 - The Presidency of the Republic of South Africa - Preparedness, and Response (PPPR), I have been closely monitoring the evolving Mpox situation, regularly briefed by the Director General of Africa CDC and PPPR Commission. I am deeply concerned by the rapid spread of Mpox across multiple regions within the African Union, with a significant rise in both cases and fatalities, reflecting a concerning shift in the epidemiological pattern.
Since the start of 2024, a total of 17,541 cases (2,822 confirmed and 14,719 suspected) and 517 deaths due to Mpox have been reported across 13 AU Member States. This week, 3 additional countries notified cases under investigation for confirmation. That can bring the total to 16 countries. Alarmingly, the number of reported cases in 2024 has surged by 160% compared to the same period in 2023.
Study finds that HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis users need vaccination against common sexually transmitted infections
August 16, 2024 - Canadian AIDS Treatment Information Exchange (CATIE) - HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) users can get other sexually transmitted infections (STIs)
An Ontario study found that a sizeable proportion of people were not immunized against STIs
Researchers encourage clinicians to use PrEP care as an opportunity to offer vaccines for STIs
When used as directed, HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is highly effective at reducing the risk of HIV infection. The most commonly used formulation of PrEP is a pill taken orally that contains two medicines—tenofovir DF and FTC. In addition to having anti-HIV activity, these drugs also work against hepatitis B virus (HBV). The combination of tenofovir DF + FTC is sold as Truvada and is also available in generic formulations.
ECDC recommends enhancing preparedness as more imported cases of clade I mpox highly likely
August 16, 2024 - European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) - In a new risk assessment, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has said that it is highly likely that the EU/EEA will see more imported cases of mpox caused by the clade I virus currently circulating in Africa. However, the likelihood of sustained transmission in Europe is very low provided that imported cases are diagnosed quickly and control measures are implemented.
Due to frequent and close travel links between the EU/EEA and Africa, ECDC recommends that EU/EEA Member States issue travel advice for people visiting or returning from areas affected by the outbreak. The likelihood of infection for people from the EU/EEA travelling to affected areas who have close contact with affected communities is high. Additionally, there is a moderate risk for close contacts of possible or confirmed imported cases into the EU/EEA.
IAS calls for urgent access to mpox vaccines across Africa
16 August 2024 (Geneva, Switzerland) – IAS - International AIDS Society - IAS – the International AIDS Society – calls for the immediate distribution of effective mpox vaccines amid the upsurge in mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and across many other African countries.
“The IAS urges a three-pronged response: rapid and unbureaucratic vaccine delivery to African countries, the establishment of rapid and free testing facilities within communities, and clear non-stigmatizing messaging to inform communities about symptoms and how to prevent the spread,” IAS President Beatriz Grinsztejn stated.
The World Health Organization declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern on 14 August 2024 for the second time. One emerging mpox strain detected has a dramatically heightened fatality rate (3-4%).
Addressing the HIV Crisis in Saskatchewan
August 15, 2024 - University of Regina - Saskatchewan continues to have the highest rates of HIV in Canada. As the epidemic enters its fifth decade, the focus is increasingly shifting towards the challenges of aging with HIV. Dr. Andrew Eaton, associate professor of social work, emphasizes the critical need for enhanced social and psychological support for older adults living with the virus.
Study highlights sex differences in notified infectious disease cases across Europe
15-Aug-2024 - Eurosurveillance - A study analysing 5.5 million cases of infectious diseases in the EU/EEA over 10 years has found important differences in the relative proportion of notified male versus female cases for several diseases.
WHO Director-General Dr A study published in Eurosurveillance analysing 5.5 million cases of infectious diseases in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) over 10 years has found important differences in the relative proportion of notified male versus female cases for several diseases. The proportion of males ranged on average from 40-45% for pertussis and Shiga toxin-producing Escherischia coli (STEC) infections to 75-80% for HIV/AIDS.
What is mpox? A microbiologist explains what’s known about this smallpox cousin
August 15, 2024 - By Rodney E. Rohde - The Conversation - On Aug. 14, 2024, the World Health Organization declared mpox a public health emergency of international concern. There have been over 15,600 cases and over 530 deaths reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries in Africa. The disease had previously caused a global outbreak from 2022 to 2023.
Mpox – previously called monkeypox – isn’t a new disease. The first confirmed human case was in 1970, when the virus was isolated from a child suspected of having smallpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Though usually mild, mpox can still potentially cause severe illness. Health officials are concerned that more cases will arise with increased travel.
As the mother in An Early Frost, Gena Rowlands helped fight the stigma of AIDS
August 15, 2024 - John Casey - ADVOCATE - Through her role in the 1985 film and in a public service ad, Rowlands showed a compassionate face to something that was so dreaded and feared at the time, writes John Casey.
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Hispanic women are less likely to get PrEP treatment - new intervention could change that
August 15, 2024 - The Conversation - In the U.S., Hispanic women have been disproportionately affected by the HIV epidemic in recent years. Yet they’ve been less likely to take advantage of PrEP, a medication that significantly reduces the risk of getting HIV.
So we created a pilot intervention to inform more people about the medication by adding it to an existing and proven HIV-prevention program aimed at heterosexual Hispanic women. All of the participants in the pilot – none of whom previously were aware of PrEP – said they were satisfied with the intervention, and the vast majority learned a great deal. These results lead us to believe that this could be a good way to lower rates of HIV in the Hispanic community.
WHO Director-General declares mpox outbreak a public health emergency of international concern
14 August 2024 - World Health Organization (WHO) - WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has determined that the upsurge of mpox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and a growing number of countries in Africa constitutes a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) under the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR).
Dr Tedros’s declaration came on the advice of an IHR Emergency Committee of independent experts who met earlier in the day to review data presented by experts from WHO and affected countries. The Committee informed the Director-General that it considers the upsurge of mpox to be a PHEIC, with potential to spread further across countries in Africa and possibly outside the continent.
Nova Scotia launches take-home STI testing kit, a first in Atlantic Canada
HALIFAX - August 14, 2024 - Nova Scotia's decision to offer free at-home tests for sexually transmitted infections is an important step toward reducing some barriers to vital sexual health care, says the head of the provincial AIDS coalition.
Dr. Todd Hatchette, an infectious disease specialist who is the clinical director of Halifax's STI clinic, said the province is seeing an increase in rates of gonorrhea, chlamydia and syphilis, and that the best line of attack is to make it easier for people to get tested.
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Toronto Public Health urges eligible residents to get vaccinated against mpox as local cases continue to rise
August 13, 2024 - Toronto Public Health - Toronto continues to report new mpox (formerly known as monkeypox) cases, with cases increasing in late June and July following major events and festivals in the city. As of July 31, a total of 93 cases has been confirmed in 2024 compared to 21 confirmed cases reported for the same period last year.
While mpox cases have been reported across the city, Toronto Public Health (TPH) recorded a higher concentration of cases in residents in the downtown core.
In response to this spike in reported cases, TPH is working with community partners to increase awareness of the risk of getting mpox, improve access to vaccination and vaccinate eligible residents.
The U.S. Embassy New Delhi and AIDS Healthcare Foundation celebrate a milestone in the fight against HIV/AIDS
New Delhi, 13 August, 2024 - U.S. Embassy and Consulates in India - The U.S. Embassy New Delhi, in partnership with the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), is proud to announce a monumental milestone: reaching 2 million lives in care, across 46 countries worldwide. This significant achievement was celebrated at the American Center in New Delhi with participation of U.S. government health officials and Manvendra Singh Gohil, who calls himself the “Gay Prince of India,” alongside key opinion leaders from LGBTQI+ communities and NGO leaders. The celebration underscored the remarkable progress made in the fight against HIV/AIDS and recognized the U.S. government’s steadfast commitment to the cause in India.
Mpox cases are soaring in Africa – what must be done to prevent a global pandemic
August 13, 2024 - By Cheryl Walter - The Conversation - Alarmed by the surge in mpox cases, the Africa Centres for Disease Control has taken the unprecedented step of declaring the outbreak sweeping through African countries a continental public health emergency. The World Health Organization (WHO) is also meeting to decide whether to trigger its highest global alert level over the epidemic.
These moves come after a virulent strain of the disease spread rapidly to 16 countries and six new countries were affected in 10 days.
There have been 15,132 mpox confirmed cases in Africa since the beginning of 2024. Some of the countries affected are Burundi, Cameroon, Congo, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Africa, Uganda and Kenya.
Virologist Cheryl Walter sets out some of the reasons the mpox outbreaks are so worrying.
Billionaire Terry Ragon Funds HIV Cure Research Based on Elite Controllers
August 13, 2024 - By Trent Straube - POZ - Software company founder Terry Ragon says he’s funding a “Manhattan Project on HIV.” Clinical trials of a therapeutic vaccine are slated for 2025.
As the founder and sole owner of software company InterSystems, Phillip “Terry” Ragon is worth about $3.1 billion, according to Forbes. Now, he is applying his successful long-term approach to business toward a new challenge: curing HIV.
Ragon and his wife, Susan, have donated about $400 million to HIV cure research. What makes the billionaire businessman think his Ragon Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, will see more success than HIV researchers across the globe have experienced during the past four decades? (To date, no HIV vaccine has made it beyond Phase III trials, and a cure has been elusive.)
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When Survival Ends
August 12, 2024 - By Mark S. King - POZ - We won’t always be HIV and AIDS survivors. That’s not how life works.
The casket of my friend Jesse Peel, an elderly longtime HIV survivor who died in 2023, was crafted of gorgeous wood—oak, I think. As I stood admiring it in the alcove of the church prior to his memorial, a powerful sense of déjà vu brought suppressed emotions rushing back.
The smell of the wooden pews, freshened with lemon-scented cleanser. The sight of the ushers greeting people and handing out programs. Whispered voices gathering and tumbling over one another. The encouragement from the pulpit to celebrate Jesse’s life joyfully because “that’s what he would have wanted,” even if our broken hearts refused to play along.
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Stigmavir to Treat HIV Stigma?
August 12, 2024 - By Trent Straube - POZ - Propaganda is deterring people from accessing healthcare as Aids-related deaths rise 34% since 2010
HIV stigma in health care is real and harmful. Fortunately, health care providers can now take the antiviral drug Stigmavir to treat their stigma. Unfortunately, the drug is fictitious, but you can watch a real ad for it on YouTube.
Casey House, an AIDS service provider in Toronto, created the commercial as a public service announcement. It’s the latest installment in the organization’s long-running “Smash Stigma” campaign. At first serious and straightforward, the Stigmavir ad morphs into a musical set to a version of “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor—the legendary diva herself even provided the rights to the song, according to a press release about the campaign.
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Remembering Bobbi Campbell, the World’s First “AIDS Poster Boy”
Aug 12, 2024 - By Tim Murphy - TheBody - In early August 1983, at a time when AIDS was just beginning to ravage urban gay communities—and when it was rare for anyone to go public with their gay identity—the cover of Newsweek featured something remarkable: Two openly gay male lovers, each of them living with AIDS, arm in arm, staring defiantly and unsmilingly at the camera, below a headline reading: Gay America: Sex, Politics and the Impact of AIDS. The one on the right, Bobby Hilliard, would die a year later, soon after the one on the left, who died at age 32 on Aug. 15, 1984—40 years ago this month.
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Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day Press conference
date: Tuesday, August 20, 2024
time: 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
location: New Orleans City Hall 1300 Perdido Street -
August 20th is Southern HIV/AIDS Awareness Day! Here in New Orleans, there is a scholarship competition for students and 2 major events happening.
Louisiana Department of Health - Are you a high school or college student passionate about health education? Do you want to make a difference by spreading awareness about HIV and STIs? Here's your chance to shine and earn a $500 scholarship. Students are tasked with making an engaging and informative video on TikTok or Instagram Reel about the importance of critical conversations around HIV and STIs. Learn more about the opportunity.
Greg Louganis beat calls to "tone the gay thing down" as an HIV-positive Olympian in the 1980s
AUGUST 10, 2024 - By Mary Elizabeth Williams - Salon.com - Gold medal-winning diver, who set the standard for the sport, opens up about fearing his death and LGBTQ athletes
Greg Louganis wasn’t supposed to compete at the 1988 Olympics. The superstar athlete, dubbed the “Baryshnikov of diving,” had originally planned on retiring after earning two gold medals in Los Angeles in 1984, to go along with the silver he won in Montreal in ’76. It didn't bode well in Seoul when, during a routine dive during the preliminaries, he hit his head on the board — a potentially catastrophic injury that killed a fellow diver five years before. He had also, unknown to the rest of the world, recently learned he was HIV-positive. Louganis was 28 years old and had every reason to believe he wouldn’t make it to 30.30.
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HIV testing kits now available at some N.S. public libraries
August 10, 2024 - By Erin Pottie - CBC - Health Equity Alliance says testing is key to lowering new infections
A Nova Scotia organization says more work is needed to prevent the spread of HIV.
To do that, it is now providing at-home screening kits to some public libraries similar to the ones handed out for COVID-19 testing.
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New Study Will Provide HIV Prevention and Treatment for Incarcerated People with Opioid Use Disorder
August 9, 2023 - University of Massachusetts Amherst - UMass Amherst and Tufts Medical Center receive $4.74 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to design, implement and assess the intervention
The University of Massachusetts Amherst and Tufts Medical Center are conducting a study to provide HIV prevention, diagnosis and treatment for people with opioid use disorders who are incarcerated in the Boston area.
The study is funded with a $4.74 million CONNECT grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Elizabeth Evans, professor of community health education in the UMass Amherst School of Public Health and Health Sciences, and Dr. Alysse Wurcel, a physician and infectious disease consultant for the Massachusetts Sheriffs’ Association, will collaborate to lead the research.
WHO invites mpox vaccine manufacturers to submit dossiers for emergency evaluation
Geneva - 9 August 2024 - World Health Organization (WHO) - WHO has today issued an invitation for manufacturers of mpox vaccines to submit an Expression of Interest for Emergency Use Listing (EUL).
The WHO Director-General announced on 7 August 2024 that he had triggered the process for EUL of mpox vaccines given worrying trends in the disease’s spread. There is a serious and growing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that has now expanded outside the country. A new viral strain, which first emerged in September 2023, has for the first time been detected outside DRC.
African region faces an unprecedent surge in mpox cases
Brazzaville - 8 August 2024 - World Health Organization (WHO) - The African region is experiencing an unprecedented increase in mpox cases since the start of 2024, with more countries previously unaffected by the disease reporting cases in an expanding spread of the virus.
World Health Organization (WHO) has elevated the mpox outbreak response to the highest-level requiring organization-wide mobilization and scale-up. In addition, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called for an emergency committee of experts meeting to determine whether the outbreak constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Fifteen African countries are currently reporting mpox outbreak, with a total of 2030 confirmed cases and 13 deaths so far this year compared with 1145 cases and seven deaths in the whole of 2023. Four countries – Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda – previously unaffected by mpox have reported cases since mid-July 2024.
Study: Single experimental shot reduces HIV levels 1,000-fold
Portland, Oregon - August 08, 2024 - By Franny White - Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) - OHSU-UCSF technology could open door to new treatment; people living with HIV may not need lifelong medications
A single shot of an experimental injection dramatically reduces levels of the monkey form of HIV in nonhuman primates for at least 30 weeks, according to a study published today in Science. The new research suggests that the lab-made shot has the potential to offer a simple and durable alternative to the current standard treatment for people living with HIV, which is effective but demanding.
The collaborative study between Oregon Health & Science University and the University of California San Francisco found Therapeutic Interfering Particles, or TIPs, reduced HIV levels in nonhuman primates by at least 1,000-fold in five of six treated subjects. The primate form of HIV was so low in one treated animal that the virus became undetectable.
Rady HIV-AIDS researcher, educator receives inaugural postdoc fellowship in memory of AIDS trailblazer
August 8, 2024 - UM TODAY - University of Manitoba - Dr. Titus Olukitibi has been named the inaugural recipient of the Dr. Dick Smith Postdoctoral Fellowship, a prestigious new award aimed at advancing the understanding and management of HIV in Manitoba.
The Threat of Mpox Has Returned but Public Knowledge About It Has Declined
August 8, 2024 - The Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania - It has been two years since the World Health Organization declared a global health emergency over an outbreak of mpox, a disease endemic to Africa that had spread to scores of countries. Now, in the summer of 2024, a deadlier version of the infectious disease has spread from the Democratic Republic of Congo to other African nations, the strain that originally hit the United States has shown signs of a resurgence, and this week the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a new alert on mpox to health care providers.
USAID Launches New Health Project to Offer HIV Services to Orphans and Vulnerable Children in South Sudan
August 8, 2024 - United States Agency for International Development - U.S. Ambassador to South Sudan Michael Adler and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission Director Kate Crawford launched a new USAID-funded health project, Hayatna, which in Arabic means “our lives.” The five-year project, launched on August 8, will offer HIV services to orphans and vulnerable children living with HIV to reduce the amount of HIV in the body. The project will also deliver economic and life skills to young women to avoid the risk of acquiring HIV. The Ambassador thanked his USAID colleagues for developing this new project. He said that the provision of life-saving assistance has been central to the long history of U.S. efforts to help the people of South Sudan that started decades before the country’s independence.
Russian influence in eastern Europe is aggravating HIV epidemic, say experts
7 Aug 2024 - Kat Lay - The Guardian - Propaganda is deterring people from accessing healthcare as Aids-related deaths rise 34% since 2010
Growing Russian influence in eastern Europe is driving a worsening HIV epidemic, health leaders have warned.
In eastern Europe and central Asia, new diagnoses of HIV have risen 20% since 2010, while Aids-related deaths have gone up 34% – the fastest rates of growth globally.
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Antiretroviral drug used to prevent HIV or hepatitis B shows promise for Alzheimer’s disease treatment in early clinical trials
SAN ANTONIO - August 7, 2024 - by Claire Kowalick - University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) - A pilot study led by scientists from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) shows promise for people with mild cognitive changes treated with lamivudine, a Food and Drug Administration-approved antiretroviral drug. The study reveals significant improvement in neurodegeneration and inflammation.
Lamivudine is an antiviral medicine that prevents human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or hepatitis B virus from multiplying in the body.
Scientists from UT Health San Antonio’s Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases and the Sam and Ann Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies developed the clinical trial to see if the drug could benefit people with cognitive impairment.
Richard Gere and Mohammed Al Turki to Be Honored at amfAR’s Venice Film Festival Gala (EXCLUSIVE)
5 Aug, 2024 - By Marc Malkin - VARIETY - Kelly Rowland and Rumer Willis will perform during the benefit
AmfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research, has announced this year’s honorees at its upcoming Venice International Film Festival gala, amfAR Venezia.
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Ghana's Hidden Epidemic: A Link Between HIV and Kidney Disease
August 4, 2024 - By Yakubu Adam - Modern Ghana - The intersection of HIV and kidney disease is a growing concern in Ghana, reflecting a broader trend observed across Sub-Saharan Africa. As the country battles the HIV epidemic, the long-term complications of the virus, including its impact on renal health, are becoming increasingly evident. This article delves into how HIV facilitates kidney disease in Ghana, the underlying mechanisms, and potential pathways forward.
AIDS Coalition of N.S. rebrands to reflect broader queer health-care mandate
Aug 04, 2024 - Andrew Sampson - CBC News - Organization will be known as Health Equity Alliance of Nova Scotia, or HEAL NS
The AIDS Coalition of Nova Scotia is changing its name to better reflect the health challenges of 2SLGBTQ+ people in the province.
But the organization says that doesn't mean it's turning its back on its longtime mission to help people living with HIV and AIDS.
“If we were going to survive, we knew we needed a refresh,” says executive director Chris Aucoin of the organization now known as the Health Equity Alliance of Nova Scotia, or HEAL NS.
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PM’s aide Romina Khurshid to table draft HIV prevention, protection legislation at NA
ISLAMABAD, Aug 03 (APP): - Prime Minister’s (PM) Coordinator for Climate Change, Romina Khurshid Alam on Saturday vowed to table the draft legislation on prevention and protection of HIV AIDS in the National Assembly to get the law enacted for the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
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Potential drug effective against flesh-eating bacteria
August 2, 2024 - by Mark Reynolds - Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis - University of Washington - Could combat serious antibiotic-resistant infections, mouse study indicates
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a novel compound that effectively clears bacterial infections in mice, including those that can result in rare but potentially fatal “flesh-eating” illnesses. The potential drug could be the first of an entirely new class of antibiotics, and a gift to clinicians seeking more effective treatments against bacteria that can’t be tamed easily with current antibiotics.
The research is published Aug. 2 in Science Advances.
Can AI Spark New Progress Against HIV?
August 2, 2024 - By Jirair Ratevosian - Duke Global Health Institute - Discussions at the AIDS2024 conference set the stage for a future where technology and human compassion work hand-in-hand to end the AIDS epidemic.
Jirair Ratevosian, DGHI’s inaugural Hock Fellow, shares this report from the AIDS2024 conference which took place July 21-26 in Munich, Germany.
The International AIDS Conference has long been a hub for cutting-edge discussions on global health, and this year AIDS2024 was no exception. While the big news at the conference was the promise of new medical breakthroughs in HIV prevention, several sessions and side meetings focused on the transformative power that artificial intelligence (AI) is already having in healthcare delivery.
£2 million grant to research reducing AIDS-related deaths caused by bacterial and fungal infections
2 August 2024 - Wits University - Professor Nelesh Govender was awarded one of 7 prestigious 5-year UK National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Global Research Professorships.
A medical microbiologist/epidemiologistin the School of Pathology, Govender’s proposed research on bacterial and fungal infections in people with advanced HIV disease (or AIDS) will now, with this NIHR funding, be applied to assess a World Health Organization package of care.
Specifically, this package of care for people living with AIDS could be refined or expanded to prevent deaths from bacterial or fungal infections.
Syphilis situation: Surge of preventable, curable but persistent disease
August 02, 2024 – By Helen Adams - The Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) - Stephen Thacker, M.D., sees the impact of a surge in syphilis cases on its youngest victims: babies born to mothers who unwittingly passed on what’s normally a sexually transmitted disease.
“Most infants don't have symptoms when they're born. It’s why we have to be very vigilant about how we test mothers and recognize at-risk infants, so that we can get that curative treatment in before they have lasting harm from this infection.”
B.C. doctor says 'inexcusable' to see rising rates of HIV infections in Canada
August 2, 2024 - By Mike Howell - VANCOUVER IS AWESOME - BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS research shows strategy to reduce deaths, new infections.
The executive director of the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS is calling on governments across the country and abroad to implement a comprehensive strategy to reduce deaths and infections after new research identified solutions towards the goal of an HIV-free generation.
Dr. Julio Montaner’s call comes after research published in the Lancet HIV journal shows that providing antiretroviral treatment to all people living with HIV — and preventive treatment to individuals at high-risk of contracting HIV — reduces deaths and new infections by more than 90 per cent.
The two-pronged made-in-B.C. approach combines what Montaner refers to as treatment as a prevention strategy, or TasP, coupled with pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP.
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Elizabeth Taylor Quietly Comforted AIDS Patients During Private Visits: ‘She Made It All About’ Them (Exclusive)
August 2, 2024 - By Jack Smart - People - Elizabeth Taylor’s estate has learned that her AIDS activism included both public-facing and private work
Elizabeth Taylor was enough of a public figure for her entire life that it was difficult to find privacy. But when it came to her AIDS activism, she was determined to connect with patients on a personal level.
Barbara Berkowitz, Taylor’s lawyer and cotrustee, tells PEOPLE that putting together the late Oscar winner’s archive has unearthed previously unknown facts about her life. “With AIDS, she did some of [her advocacy], obviously, public-facing,” says Berkowitz. “But one of the things we're finding now as we put together her archive is that she used to visit patients.”
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The freedom of disclosure: David Anzuelo's journey through HIV, art, and advocacy
AUGUST 02, 2024 - By Nic Austin - HIVPlusMag.com - In an exclusive interview, discover how actor and fight coordinator David Anzuelo navigates HIV without limits through the power of sharing his status.
Elizabeth Taylor was enough of a public figure for her entire life that it was difficult to find privacy. But when it came to her AIDS activism, she was determined to connect with patients on a personal level.
Barbara Berkowitz, Taylor’s lawyer and cotrustee, tells PEOPLE that putting together the late Oscar winner’s archive has unearthed previously unknown facts about her life. “With AIDS, she did some of [her advocacy], obviously, public-facing,” says Berkowitz. “But one of the things we're finding now as we put together her archive is that she used to visit patients.”
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USAID Enhances Local Capacity to Provide Tuberculosis (TB) Services for People Living with HIV (PLHIV)
August 2, 2024 - United States Agency for International Development - TB remains one of the leading causes of death among PLHIV, making HIV/TB service integration crucial for improving health outcomes and reducing mortality rates. On July 9, USAID organized an online training session for 70 providers from clinics and program managers from the Center for Disease Control in five provinces (An Giang, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City). The session focused on integrating TB services into HIV prevention and treatment services and improving infection prevention and control at HIV clinics based on the latest guidance from the Ministry of Health.
Activists Challenge Pharma Company Gilead Over HIV Medication
MUNICH, Aug 02 (IPS) - by Ed Holt - Global Issues - Campaigners and experts have demanded a breakthrough HIV intervention hailed as “the closest thing to an HIV vaccine” must be made available as soon and as cheaply as possible to all who need it as its manufacturer faces protests over its pricing.
Activists led a massive protest during the 25th International AIDS Conference (AIDS2024) in Munich last week as a study was presented showing lenacapavir—a drug currently sold by pharmaceutical firm Gilead for more than USD 40,000 per year as an HIV treatment—could be sold for USD 40 per year as a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to help prevent HIV infection.
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