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Positively Positive - Living with HIV/AIDS:
HIV/AIDS News Archive - February 2024
New Guidelines for Use of Statins by People with HIV to Prevent Cardiovascular Events
February 29, 2024 - HIV.gov - The Department of Health and Human Services Guidelines Panel for the Use of Antiretroviral Agents in Adults and Adolescents with HIV (the Panel) has developed recommendations for the use of statin therapy in people with HIV, in collaboration with representatives from the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, and the HIV Medicine Association. The new guidelines, Recommendations for the Use of Statin Therapy as Primary Prevention of Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease in People with HIV, were published on February 27, 2024, and can be found online at ClinicalInfo.hiv.gov.
The new guidelines were informed by findings from the NIH-supported Randomized Trial to Prevent Vascular Events in HIV or REPRIEVE trial. REPRIEVE found that a statin (pitavastatin), a cholesterol-lowering medication, may offset the high risk of cardiovascular disease in people living with HIV by more than a third, potentially preventing one in five major cardiovascular events (e.g., heart attacks, strokes, or surgery to open a blocked artery) or premature deaths in this population. The study findings were published in the New England Journal of MedicineExit Disclaimer last summer. The Panel and representatives of the three professional medical societies translated those research findings into the clinical practice guidelines published this week.
Detroit hosts first Black HIV awareness summit
Feb. 29, 2024 - Hannah Mackay - Palm Beach Daily News - The Detroit Health Department hosted its first Black HIV awareness summit Thursday to start community conversations about the virus and health disparities that impact Black Detroiters with HIV.
Held at Detroit's Second Ebenezer Baptist Church, the day-long summit was designed to raise awareness about HIV and the services that exist for those living with the virus.
Read more...
New clinical trial aims to reduce unacceptably high advanced HIV death rates in Africa
FEBRUARY 29, 2024 - McMaster University - BRIGHTER WORLD - A new trial will test a low-cost antibiotic in reducing deaths among 8,000 patients with advanced HIV who are starting or restarting anti-retroviral therapy (ART), a combination of drugs to treat HIV.
The study, called REVIVE, is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and involves a pan-African network of investigators, co-led by researchers at the University of Cape Town (UCT) and the Population Health Research Institute (PHRI), a joint institute of McMaster University and Hamilton Health Sciences. This trial aims to determine whether the antibiotic azithromycin, when taken once daily over four weeks, can reduce death in adults with advanced HIV.
Blood pressure medication and the risk of dementia - HIV update, 29 February 2024
29 February 2024 - aidsmap - A round-up of the latest HIV news, for people living with HIV in the UK and beyond.
Dementia is a group of symptoms connected to the decline of brain functioning. Symptoms of dementia include loss of memory, difficulty thinking (for example planning or concentrating) and problems with language.
Having HIV can increase your risk of cognitive disorders, including dementia. But people with HIV also have the same risk factors for dementia as people without HIV – for example, old age, high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, diabetes, smoking and heavy alcohol use.
But a recent paper published in Anthropology and Medicine, drawing on ethnographic research conducted at Pakistan’s National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) from 2010-2012, shows that this initiative backfired when adopted in Pakistan.
Read more...
Marshall’s Drinko Library to present AIDS Memorial Quilt, host other AIDS Awareness Week events
FEBRUARY 28, 2024 - Marshall University NEWS - Marshall University - Marshall has several activities planned in recognition of AIDS Awareness Week, including exhibiting the AIDS Memorial Quilt, which will be on display in Drinko Library March 4 – 20.
The AIDS Memorial Quilt is among the largest community arts projects in history. It is compiled of 50,000 quilt squares created in memory of a loved one who has died in the AIDS epidemic. The National AIDS Memorial brings sections of the AIDS Memorial Quilt to communities across the United States to raise awareness and promote education about HIV/AIDS, while remembering those lost to the disease.
Expertise France partners with UNAIDS to fight HIV stigma and discrimination in western and central Africa
GENEVA, 28 February 2024 - UNAIDS - The French public international cooperation agency ‘Expertise France’ and UNAIDS have signed a new partnership agreement to fight stigma and discrimination in six western and central African countries.
The aim of the €1.92 million partnership called, "Community response to stigma and discrimination and legislative reform," is to promote access to inclusive HIV services that respect human rights for key populations, including men who have sex with men, people who inject drugs, sex workers, transgender people and young women and adolescent girls in Benin, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Central African Republic, Senegal and Togo.
Chances Are You Know Someone with a Rare Disease
28-Feb-2024 - Newswise - JOHN'S HOPKINS Medicine - Johns Hopkins experts join global community in highlighting Rare Disease Day, Feb. 29
The leap year day, Feb. 29, occurs only once every four years, and each year around this time comes a global effort to recognize rare diseases. Some 30 million people in the U.S. — 10% of the population — have a rare disease, and Johns Hopkins Medicine experts are working alongside others around the globe to highlight rare disease impacts on research and treatments and ways to seek expert care.
Government of Canada's sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI) action plan 2024-2030
February 2024 - Public Health Agency of Canada - The Government of Canada is committed to achieving global targets to reduce HIV/AIDS, hepatitis B and C, and sexually transmitted infections by 2030. These goals cannot be achieved by the federal government alone; we will continue to work with our dedicated partners and stakeholders to support those impacted by sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI). The renewal of the Government of Canada STBBI Action Plan builds on our ongoing collective efforts and outlines a new path forward.
It is important that all people living in Canada have access to the sexual and reproductive health services they need, no matter where they live. Presently, rates of HIV, hepatitis B and C, syphilis, and other sexually transmitted infections remain high. Although progress has been made through the work of community-based partners and innovations such as HIV self-test kits and point-of-care tests (POCT) for HIV and syphilis, there is much more to be done. Efforts need to be strengthened and realigned in response to changes in STBBI incidence within key populations.
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UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima responds to the passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill in Ghana’s parliament
February 28, 2024 - UNAIDS - Responding to the passage of the Human Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill in Ghana’s parliament, UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said:
“The Human Sexual rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, a private member’s bill passed by parliament, has not yet become a law in Ghana.
If the bill does become a law, it will affect everyone.
Q&A: Decline in condom use indicates need for further education, awareness
February 27, 2024 - Lauren Kirschman - UW News - University of Washington - New research from the University of Washington shows that condom use has been trending downward among younger gay and bisexual men over the last decade, even when they aren’t taking pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP.
The study, published Feb. 27 in AIDS and Behavior, measures changes in sex without condoms among HIV-negative gay and bisexual men who are not taking PrEP. Using data from the 2014-19 cycles of the American Men’s Internet Survey — a web-based survey of cisgender men ages 15 and older who have sex with men (MSM) — researchers found that roughly half of HIV-negative men reported using condoms at least sometimes in the last year. That was higher than the 15% of respondents who reported using PrEP.
Normalization of unprotected sex among youth: A concern for HIV/AIDS control
February 27 2024 - By Amanda Kporwofa - Modern Ghana - Two weeks ago, I engaged 10 young people (five males and five females between the ages of 18-24) in an informal interaction to understand their sex habits with respect to whether or not they preferred to use condoms.
To my surprise, only one of the people I engaged said they used condoms in their last sexual intercourse.
While two others said they had sex by “accident” and thus they did not have time to consider using condoms, the rest intentionally did not use condoms.
On the 10th anniversary of Zero Discrimination Day UNAIDS calls for the protection of human rights as a path to protecting health for all
GENEVA, 27 February 2024 - UNAIDS - Zero Discrimination Day was established by UNAIDS ten years ago to advance equality and fairness for everyone regardless of gender, age, sexuality, ethnicity or HIV status. However, progress is in peril.
Attacks on the rights of women and girls, of LGBTQ+ people, and of other marginalized communities are on the rise. And when laws, policies, practices or norms enshrine punishment, discrimination or stigma for people because they are women, or are LGBTQ+, or are migrants, or sex workers, or use drugs, the results lead to failing public health as these communities are pushed away from vital health and social services.
“The attacks on rights are a threat to freedom and democracy and are harmful to health. Stigma and discrimination obstruct HIV prevention, testing, treatment and care, and hold back progress towards ending AIDS by 2030,” said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “It is only by protecting everyone’s rights that we can protect everyone’s health.”
HIV Is Not a Crime Awareness Day 2024
February 27, 2024 - By Trent Straube - Observed Wednesday, February 28, #HINACDay is now a global awareness day. Check out these virtual events to fight HIV criminalization.
Wednesday, February 28, marks the third annual HIV Is Not a Crime Awareness Day (#HINACDay; #HIVIsNotACrime). “This awareness day is an opportunity to amplify the voices of those who have been criminalized based on their HIV status” and is also “a day to support advocates mobilizing to change laws during their legislative session that target people living with HIV,” note the event organizers via Facebook posts on their HIV Is Not a Crime Awareness Day page.
As of this year, HINAC Day is recognized as a global awareness day; as such, the day has been rebranded, including a new logo
Read more...
Americans Are Becoming More Uncomfortable Interacting With Co-Workers Living With HIV, Report Shows
Feb 27, 2024 - Jennifer Lotito - Forbes - If you consider the major barriers to ending HIV, you might point to gaps in testing or the lack of access to treatment and care, especially in marginalized communities. But there’s another major obstacle–one that is invisible to the naked eye, yet lingers like a threatening cloud: stigma.
Read more...
Durbin Slams Republicans For Continuing To Delay Reauthorization Of PEPFAR
02.26.24 - U.S. Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois - In A Speech On The Senate Floor, Durbin Called Out Republicans’ Hypocrisy For Advocating For ‘Pro-Life’ Policies While Blocking PEPFAR Funding That Would Save The Lives Of Those Impacted By HIV/AIDS
U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) today delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling on his Republican colleagues to stop delaying the reauthorization of the President’s Emergency Plan forAIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a Bush-era program that has saved more than 25 million lives worldwide in conjunction with its companion effort, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. In his speech, Durbin spoke about the importance of programs built to support nations in Africa, including PEPFAR, mobility efforts, and clean water and sanitation initiatives.
Gilead to Present Late-Breaking Data and Real-World Evidence Highlighting Innovative Antiviral Portfolio and Research Pipeline at CROI 2024
FOSTER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- February 26, 2024 - Gilead - – Key Findings from HIV Treatment Research Studies Evaluating Biktarvy® and Investigational Long-Acting Combination Regimens Affirm Commitment to Continuous Biomedical Innovation –
– Latest Real-World Evidence Analyses Evaluate Impact of Veklury® on Mortality and Long-COVID –
– New Data Evaluating the Safety and Efficacy of Hepcludex® in People with HIV/HBV/HDV Coinfection to Be Presented –
Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: GILD) today announced the upcoming presentation of new clinical data and real-world evidence (RWE) from its antiviral research and development programs at the 31st Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI 2024) taking place from March 3-6. The data from nearly eighty studies across HIV, COVID-19 and viral hepatitis include late-breaking data, four oral presentations, and reflect Gilead’s commitment to address the evolving needs of a diverse range of people and communities affected by some of the world’s most challenging viruses.
“At CROI 2024, we look forward to sharing new research that highlights the breadth of our antiviral portfolio and expanding pipeline as we strive to treat, prevent, cure and help eradicate viral diseases worldwide,” said Frank Duff, MD, Senior Vice President, Virology Therapeutic Area Head, Gilead Sciences. “The data selected for presentation at CROI is a reflection of our unwavering commitment to advancing person-centered biomedical innovation in virology, aimed at fulfilling urgent global needs.”
U.S. FDA Approves Expanded Indication for Gilead’s Biktarvy® to Treat People with HIV with Suppressed Viral Loads, Pre-existing Resistance
FOSTER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- February 26, 2024 - Gilead - – Biktarvy Now First and Only INSTI-Based Single-Tablet Regimen That is FDA Approved and DHHS Guideline Recommended for People Who are Virologically Suppressed with M184V/I Resistance –
– M184V/I One of the Most Common Forms of Resistance Among People with HIV –
– Biktarvy Is a Long-Term Treatment Option with a High Barrier to Resistance for a Broad Range of Individuals –
Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: GILD) today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a new, expanded indication for Biktarvy® (bictegravir 50 mg/emtricitabine 200 mg/tenofovir alafenamide 25 mg tablets, B/F/TAF) to treat people with HIV (PWH) who have suppressed viral loads with known or suspected M184V/I resistance, a common form of treatment resistance. HIV treatment resistance is permanent and irreversible, which can jeopardize future treatment options for PWH. The M184V/I resistance mutation has been found to be present in a range (22-63%) of PWH with pre-existing resistance to nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) across various HIV subtypes. This label update is supported by Study 4030, which evaluated the efficacy, safety, and tolerability profile of Biktarvy in a broad range of people with HIV-1 with or without pre-existing NRTI resistance, including those with the M184V/I resistance. Biktarvy is now the first and only integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI)-based single-tablet regimen that is FDA approved and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) guideline recommended for PWH who are virally suppressed with M184V/I resistance.
AIDS Vancouver Community Celebration
Celebrate 40+ years of community and our new name, purpose, and values
Vancouver, BC - February 25 2024 - AIDS Vancouver - March 26 2024 -
5pm-8:00pm - VIFF Centre
In February 2023, AIDS Vancouver started a community consultation process, called Vision Our Future, to revise our mission, vision, and name. Now, we are getting ready to share our new purpose, values, name and look, and celebrate the past and present people and communities who have made this possible.
Please join our Community Celebration on March 26, at the Vancouver International Film Festival starting at 5pm. All are welcome to celebrate with us.
Global Fund to Provide Emergency Services to 1.3 Million Afghan Returnees
Geneva/Kabul, 24 February 2024 – The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (The Global Fund) - The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the Global Fund) has approved over US$4.7 million in emergency funding to deliver HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and malaria services to the 1.3 million Afghans who have been living in Pakistan who must now return to their country in the coming year.
The US$4.7 million in emergency funds will be added to a US$66 million grant that started on 1 January 2024 for a period of three years. The grant is implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
“The anticipated 1.3 million people represent over 3% of Afghanistan’s population,” said Annelise Hirschmann, Head of the Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America & the Caribbean Department at the Global Fund. “This steep increase in population, especially in the rural and hard-to-reach areas bordering Pakistan, represents an epidemiological risk and cannot be accommodated without reinforcing essential HIV, TB and malaria services.”
Almodóvar receives NIH grant to study pulmonary hypertension in HIV patients
23-FEB-2024 - Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center - Across the globe, more than 39 million people are living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), the virus that causes AIDS, including more than 1.3 million new HIV diagnoses last year. The majority of those afflicted — approximately 76% — have access to antiviral therapy that allows them to live with HIV as a chronic disease.
Sharilyn Almodóvar, Ph.D., from the Department of Immunology and Molecular Microbiology at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) School of Medicine and the TTUHSC Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, said that even with the widespread availability of therapy, people living with HIV are facing challenges.
Looking Ahead to CROI 2024 with NIH's Dr. Carl Dieffenbach
Feb 23, 2024 - HIV.Gov - Ahead of the 2024 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), @niaid's Dr. Carl Dieffenbach shares a preview of some of the research he's looking forward to. Tune in March 3-6 for ongoing coverage of #CROI2024.
Government of Canada supports community-based projects addressing HIV, Hepatitis C, and other sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections
February 23, 2024 - Surrey, British Columbia - Public Health Agency of Canada - Today, Yasir Naqvi, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Health, on behalf of the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, announced more than $12.6 million in funding through the HIV and Hepatitis C Community Action Fund (CAF) and the Harm Reduction Fund (HRF) for 16 projects to support the work of community-based organizations addressing HIV, hepatitis C and other sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBI) throughout British Columbia.
Measles Makes a Comeback: What Parents Need to Know
Newswise — LOS ANGELES (Feb. 23, 2024) - Cedars Sinai - Physician Urges Parents to Vaccinate Children as Global Uptick in Deadly Childhood Disease Reaches California
A highly contagious childhood disease once eradicated by vaccination has made a comeback.
Globally, measles cases increased by 79% in 2023, according to the World Health Organization. In 2022, WHO estimated that measles killed more than 130,000—most of them children.
In the U.S., during the first two months of 2024, nearly two dozen cases have been reported in California, Arizona and nine other states.
Concern over HIV patients who are not receiving treatment
February 23, 2024 - SAnews.gov.za - South African Government News Agency - Health Minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, says he remains concerned by those who are not on antiretroviral therapy (ART) despite knowing their HIV status.
“We are doing extremely well on the number of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) who know their status. However, we have been struggling to reach a great milestone on the number of people that are on ARTs,” he said on Thursday.
Speaking at the high-level meeting convened in Cape Town by the US President’s Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar), Phaahla said a majority of these patients do come for treatment, but they disengage from care due to various factors.
Cabenuva Beats Daily Pills for People With Adherence Challenges
February 23, 2024 - By Liz Highleyman - Long-acting cabotegravir and rilpivirine injections were more effective than daily oral regimens, according to ViiV Healthcare.
Long-acting Cabenuva (injectable cabotegravir and rilpivirine) is more effective than daily antiretroviral pills for people who have had difficulty achieving consistent adherence and maintaining viral suppression, according to an announcement from ViiV Healthcare.
Read more...
THE ELIZABETH TAYLOR AIDS FOUNDATION HOSTS “STUCK IN THE 80S NIGHT” ON NATIONAL HIV IS NOT A CRIME DAY IN ATLANTA
ATLANTA (February 22, 2024) -The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation (ETAF) - Outdated Criminalization Laws and Leading HIV Rates Brings Awareness Opportunity to Atlanta
The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation (ETAF) announced today its "Stuck in the 80s Night" to be held at Center Stage in Atlanta on National HIV Is Not A Crime Awareness Day – a national observance the organization commemorates on February 28. The event centers awareness about HIV-specific criminalization laws established in the 1980s by educating about the impact of outdated legislation and celebrating the resilience of people living with HIV.
"Stuck in the 80s Night" will feature fireside chats and panel discussions led by CNN Newsroom anchor, Fredricka Whitfield, CNN This Morning Weekend co-anchor, Victor Blackwell, ETAF Council of Justice Leaders, Robert Suttle, Former Director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy, Harold Phillips, Co-Executive Director of HIV Legal Network, Janet Butler-McPhee, and Co-Executive Director of Sero Project, Kamaria Laffrey. The red-carpet evening will also include performances by Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and six-time Grammy award-winning artist, Flavor Flav, poetry from HIV/AIDS Presidential Advisory Council Member, Kayla Quimbley, and a celebratory ballroom scene led by the father of Haus of Maison Margiela, Vinny Watson.
 
AHF Honors and Remembers Indomitable AIDS Activist Hydeia Broadbent
FORT LAUDERDALE, FL (February 21, 2024) - AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) - Broadbent, HIV-positive since birth, partnered with AHF on several AIDS advocacy and awareness campaigns
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) mourns the death of lifelong AIDS activist Hydeia Broadbent who passed away in her sleep yesterday at the age of 39. Broadbent, who was HIV-positive since birth, first came to national prominence in 1996 when she appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and other national news and talk programs at the age of 11 to talk about her life living with AIDS.
Statement – “I wish for...”: The hopes of people living with HIV strengthen our commitment to #EndAIDS
21 February 2024 - World Health Organization (WHO) - Statement by Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe.
My professional involvement with HIV goes back 30 years, to 1994 when I joined MSF-Belgium working on TB and HIV in Somalia. The world was a very different place; an HIV diagnosis was practically a death sentence, getting tested was a lengthy ordeal and treatment options were scarce.
Much of the progress we could only dream about back then has become reality, such as highly effective treatment that reduces the HIV virus in the blood to a point where it is undetectable and cannot be transmitted to others. We have multiple means of prevention and rapid testing. From a medical point of view, HIV has simply become a chronic disease. People with HIV can live long, healthy lives. But a significant block remains. HIV stigma and discrimination are still taking a toll, preventing people from getting tested and treated.
Gov’t providing $1 billion for HIV/AIDS reduction programme
February 21, 2024 - JAMAICA OBSERVER - THE Jamaica Government is providing more than one billion dollars for the country’s National HIV/AIDS Response Project as it seeks to further decrease infections in high-risks group.
The Government said that the money will be spent during the 2024/2025 fiscal year and that the programme is geared at reducing AIDS-related morbidity by providing effective biomedical and supporting services and reducing new HIV infections among key populations through behavioural and structural interventions.
Read more...
Preventative healthcare at your fingertips
February 20, 2024 - University of Ottawa - University of Ottawa researcher develops bilingual healthcare app to help Canadians stay healthy in face of healthcare crisis
With hospital emergency departments overwhelmed and Canadians feeling frustrated by a lack of primary care access, a free webapp developed at the University of Ottawa is providing trusted information about preventative health care to empower the public to take control of their own health.
Digital Innovation
A collaborative effort from the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Engineering has led to the development of icanbewell.ca, an innovative digital hub accessible to the public and health care providers.
Uptake of HIV prevention medication doubles with mix of digital health interventions, study finds
February 20, 2024 - UCLA Health researchers say behavioral health and wraparound services are critical in uptake of biomedical prevention
A UCLA Health-led study found a combination of interventions of one-on-one telehealth coaching, peer support forums, and automated text messages more than doubled the use of the HIV prevention strategy, called PrEP, among younger, at-risk Americans, a group that historically has had low use of the medication.
The randomized controlled trial results, published in the journal Lancet Digital Health, tested combinations of interventions to improve HIV prevention behaviors, including pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, among younger Americans who have historically had the lowest rate of uptake of the drug among the 1.2 million people in the U.S. the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates would benefit from the medication.
Measles: What a pediatric infectious disease expert wants you to know
February 20, 2024 - By Adam Ward - McMaster University - Jacqueline Wong, a pediatric infectious disease expert and assistant professor with McMaster University’s Department of Pediatrics, says getting the measles vaccine can protect children from the incredibly contagious disease.
Health experts worldwide are issuing warnings due to an explosive increase in cases of measles.
In late 2023, the World Health Organization released a warning after reporting a 30-fold increase in measles cases in Europe. The risk posed by measles even prompted the Government of Canada to previously issue a travel health notice, and in February 2024, a confirmed case of measles in a child from Ontario was being investigated by Peel Public Health.
We spoke with Jacqueline Wong, a pediatric infectious disease expert and assistant professor with McMaster University’s Department of Pediatrics, about measles, how it spreads and what parents need to know.
National Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS Streaming Discussion Series Centers Black Americans
RICHMOND, Va., Feb. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Balm In Gilead Inc. - The National Week of Prayer for the Healing of AIDS, taking place March 3-9, will feature streaming discussions focusing on HIV/AIDS and Black Americans. "The Doctor and the Preacher" series is produced by The Balm In Gilead, Inc. and will be available live on Facebook and YouTube at 12pm Eastern Time Monday, March 4 through Wednesday, March 6.
"In light of the fact that HIV and AIDS continue to have disproportionate and tragic impact on Black families and communities, our series will explore what individuals, congregations, and policymakers can do," said Dr. Pernessa C. Seele, founder/CEO of The Balm In Gilead, Inc.
Researchers are using RNA in a new approach to fight HIV
FEBRUARY 20, 2024 - WATERLOO NEWS - University of Waterloo - You know mRNA, now meet siRNA
Society learned about the value of mRNA during the COVID-19 pandemic when we saw scientists and medical professionals harness its power to deliver a vaccine for the virus within a year.
Now, University of Waterloo pharmacy associate professor Emmanuel Ho has developed a novel nanomedicine loaded with genetic material called small interfering RNAs (siRNA) to fight human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) using gene therapy. These siRNAs regulate which genes or proteins are turned on or off in our cells and showed a 73 per cent reduction in HIV replication.
“This opens the door for new therapeutics in the fight against HIV,” said Dr. Ho, who is among Waterloo’s researchers and entrepreneurs leading health innovation in Canada.
uOttawa scientists develop novel radiotracer for earlier detection of disease
February 20, 2024 - University of Ottawa - Turns out a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down - and light up a PET scan
The vast majority of positron emission tomography (PET) imaging systems map out how the body uses a radioactive form of glucose for energy. Since many cancers use glucose as metabolic fuel, they light up on glucose PET scans. However, not all cancers use glucose as fuel, and some normal organs, like the brain and heart, use high amounts of glucose too, making it difficult to identify some diseases from this type of diagnostic scan.
Now, scientists at the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) have developed a new radiotracer (called [18F]4-FDF) that can map how cells use fructose for energy. Fructose is a different type of metabolic fuel that is increasingly being recognized as a fuel for disease. Fructose, a monosaccharide known as “fruit sugar”, is a common dietary sugar found naturally in fruit, honey, and processed foods. Unlike glucose, fructose is not normally used for fuel by the healthy brain and heart, appearing mostly in healthy liver and kidneys. By identifying where fructose is being used in the body, [18F]4-FDF will allow for earlier detection of a wide range of diseases, including cancers, as well as inflammation of the heart and brain.
Droughts may trigger HIV transmission increase among women in rural sub-Saharan Africa, study finds
20 February 2024 - University of Bristol - Droughts have the potential to increase the spread of HIV for women living in rural parts of Africa, researchers at the University of Bristol have found.
In the study, published today in AIDS and Behavior, findings imply that drought triggers behavioural changes as people struggle to battle poverty and food insecurity through activities such as transactional sex.
Due to climate change, droughts are likely to become increasingly common in the future, which could lead to higher instances of HIV transmission.
Sub-Saharan Africa will be one of the regions most affected by climate change, with increasing risks of drought caused by changes in precipitation and limited water storage, as well as limited capacity and resources to support adaptation. Drought is an ongoing and worsening trend in sub-Saharan Africa, with the percentage of land experiencing severe drought increasing from around 5% to 15% since 1901.
Provincial Government Providing Funding to Support AIDS Committee
February 19 2024 - Government of Newfoundland and Labrador - The Honourable Tom Osborne, Minister of Health and Community Services, today announced more than $1 million in funding to support the AIDS Committee of Newfoundland and Labrador.
The AIDS Committee of Newfoundland and Labrador (ACNL) is a provincial community-based, non-profit charitable organization committed to preventing the spread of HIV, hepatitis C virus and related sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections through education and supportive harm reduction-based programs and services.
'No backup plan': Funding for HIV self-testing kits ending in March
February 19, 2024 - Kelly Geraldine Malone The Canadian Press - CTV News - Prossy Luzige often gets calls from people looking for HIV tests that they can do in the privacy of their own homes.
The program co-ordinator at CAYR Community Connections in Ontario says the take-home tests are crucial to connecting with people as Canada's HIV infections climb.
But the groundbreaking initiative to provide the kits across Canada is in peril, as funding runs out at the end of March.
Read more...
HIV among older South Africans in rural areas: big study shows there’s a problem that’s being neglected
February 18, 2024 - The Conversation - South Africa continues to have a high prevalence of HIV among all age groups. About 8.2 million people or 13.7% of the population live with HIV, one of the highest rates in the world.
The country also has one of the world’s most impressive antiretroviral therapy programmes. Over 5 million people living with HIV are currently on chronic treatment. Widespread access to antiretroviral therapies since 2008 has led to millions of people ageing with chronic HIV infection. Consequently, people with HIV are older on average than they were just a decade ago.
Most HIV prevention and treatment programmes and policies in South Africa remain focused on adolescents and young adults. A growing group of middle-aged and older adults with HIV, or at high risk, are being left behind.
Researchers seek clues to how monkeypox virus may infiltrate brain cells
February 16, 2024 - By Gillian Rutherford - University of Alberta - U of A team first to examine possible pathway for neurological symptoms associated with global outbreak of mpox disease.
A multidisciplinary team at the University of Alberta has for the first time sought to understand how monkeypox virus may be causing neurological symptoms in people affected by the global outbreak of mpox disease, declared by the World Health Organization in 2022.
In newly published research in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the team used laboratory experiments to infect human brain cells with the monkeypox virus. They found monkeypox virus infiltrated the astrocytes — a type of cell responsible for normal brain function — triggering an extreme immune response.
This Week’s Episode of Reveal: Journalism and Protest at the Dawn of AIDS
February 16, 2024 - By
DANIEL MOATTAR - MOTHER JONES - Tony Fauci and others recount a fight on two fronts: against HIV, and against public hostility and indifference.
This week’s episode of Reveal features WNYC’s Kai Wright and the Nation‘s Lizzy Ratner, hosts of New York Public Radio and the History Channel’s Blindspot: The Plague in the Shadows. Wright and Ratner take on the history and politics of the early AIDS crisis, surveying contemporary media coverage, community responses, and the enduring waves of activism that followed the dawn of HIV.
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Study with young men underscores the need for long-acting forms of HIV prevention
FEBRUARY 16, 2024 - Canadian AIDS Treatment Information Exchange (CATIE) - Clinical trials have found that a combination of certain anti-HIV medicines is highly effective at reducing the risk of HIV infection. This use of medicines to prevent HIV is called pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
PrEP involves taking a pill that consists of two anti-HIV medicines—tenofovir + FTC—usually on a daily basis. Tenofovir is available in two formulations: the original version is called TDF (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate) and the newer version is called TAF (tenofovir alafenamide).
High vaccination coverage key against expected increase of measles cases in the EU/EEA
February 16, 2024 - European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) - Measles cases are expected to continue increasing in the EU/EEA in the coming months due to sub-optimal vaccination coverage for measles-containing vaccines (MCV) in a number of EU/EEA countries, the high probability of importation from areas experiencing high circulation and the fact that the coming months represent the seasonal peak of the virus.
The evaluation is included in a recent ECDC assessment: Measles on the rise in the EU/EEA: Considerations for public health response.
ECDC data shows that in January and early February 2024, the number of EU/EEA countries reporting measles cases has increased. At least seven deaths have been reported from two countries.
“Nobody should die from measles. The increase in cases of measles, a highly contagious, but vaccine-preventable disease, is a stark reminder that all Member States should maximise efforts to achieve and maintain high vaccination coverage for all vaccine-preventable diseases. Vaccines are a safe and effective way to reduce the health burden of infectious diseases and avoid unnecessary loss of life,” says Andrea Ammon, ECDC Director.
HHS Intends to Propose Rulemaking on HIV-positive Organ Transplantation
February 15, 2024 - HIV.GOV - Years of HOPE Act Research Informs Potential Organ Transplant Policy Change for People with HIV
As people with HIV live longer, end-stage diseases of the kidney, liver, heart and lung continue to rise. As a result, the need for organs available for transplantation has increased. However, donor organs are in chronic short supply nationwide for people with and without HIV. While people with HIV can and do continue to receive organs from HIV-negative donors, transplants from donors with HIV may reduce time on the transplant waiting list and associated costs for these recipients. Nearly a decade of research into organs transplanted from donors with HIV to recipients with HIV will inform an intended proposed rule from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that, if finalized, would remove some of the current restrictions that authorize such transplants only under research protocols, potentially making them more widely available. As more people with HIV become organ donors, the overall pool of available organs is anticipated to increase, benefiting all people on transplant waiting lists since every successful transplant shortens the waitlist for all patients.
Justice Department Sues Tennessee for Enforcing State Law that Discriminates Against People with HIV
February 15, 2024 - U.S. Department of JUSTICE - The Justice Department filed a lawsuit today against the State of Tennessee and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The department previously notified Tennessee and the TBI that they violated the ADA by enforcing the state’s aggravated prostitution statute against people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). That letter of findings detailed the minimum remedial measures necessary to address the discrimination.
“The enforcement of state criminal laws that treat people differently based on HIV status alone and that are not based on actual risks of harm, discriminate against people living with HIV,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “People living with HIV should not be subjected to a different system of justice based on outdated science and misguided assumptions. This lawsuit reflects the Justice Department’s commitment to ensuring that people living with HIV are not targeted because of their disability.”
Inequities in HIV testing, diagnosis and care for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities
15-Feb-2024 - Newswise - by Valerie Goodwin - Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan - People with disabilities are often at higher risk for exposure to HIV due to barriers in engaging healthcare and other systemic factors and are thus considered a priority for prevention and testing efforts. However, these efforts don’t always extend to people with intellectual disabilities due to a misunderstanding that people with intellectual disabilities are mostly asexual.
Researchers at University of Michigan Health conducted one of the largest epidemiological studies of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities to closely examine where the gaps in HIV care lie and found large disparities in care for Black patients as well as for patients with autism and co-occurring intellectual disabilities.
This San Diego HIV Social Group Is Still Thriving After More Than 20 Years
Feb 15, 2024 - By Tim Murphy - TheBody - Social and support groups were once a lifeline for people living with HIV/AIDS back in the “bad old days” before HIV was a manageable illness for most Americans. But they were already waning when COVID hit in 2020. After that, like many things that the pandemic altered—on-site five-day weeks for office staffers, constant travel for work, and even educational classes or reunions—in-person HIV groups have declined even further. Why bother showering, making yourself presentable head-to-toe and getting in the car or on public transit when Zoom allows you to convene with people without having to leave the house?
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Joe Rogan Provides A Platform To HIV/AIDS Denialists
Feb 15, 2024 - By Joshua Cohen - Forbes - HIV is a deadly virus. It causes AIDS. If you contract HIV, unless you are prescribed antiretroviral drugs, you will likely progress to AIDS within a decade and die shortly thereafter. This is not, however, how certain guests on Joe Rogan’s show see it.
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City of Hope research featuring the successful treatment of the oldest patient to achieve remission for leukemia and HIV published in The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
LOS ANGELES - Feb. 14, 2024 -By Letisia Marquez - City of Hope - The case demonstrates that older adults with blood cancers who receive reduced intensity chemotherapy before a stem cell transplant with donor cells that are resistant to HIV may be cured of HIV infection
City of Hope®, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States, treated the oldest person to be cured of a blood cancer and then achieve remission for HIV after receiving a blood stem cell transplant from a donor with a rare genetic mutation. Research published in NEJM today demonstrates that older adults with blood cancers who receive reduced intensity chemotherapy before a stem cell transplant with donor cells that are resistant to HIV may be cured of HIV infection.
Paul Edmonds, 68, of Desert Springs, California, is the fifth person in the world to achieve remission for acute myelogenous leukemia and HIV after receiving stem cells with a rare genetic mutation, homozygous CCR5 Delta 32. That mutation makes people who have it resistant to acquiring HIV. Edmonds is also the person who had HIV the longest — for over 31 years — among these five patients.
U of M research advances potential HIV cure strategy
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (02/14/2024) - Ezra Xiong - University of Minnesota Medical School - Published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases Oxford Academic, research led by the University of Minnesota Medical School offers a new avenue of hope in the fight against chronic human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection.
The researchers explored the use of Natural Killer (NK) cells aiming to restore their function for better infection control — an approach that could be used in a broader HIV cure strategy as multiple companies are working on mass production of healthy NK cells.
Meet the campaigner at the forefront of HIV/AIDS activism since the 1980s
13th February 2024 - WORDS BY CONOR CLARK- HEADER BY ANISA CLEAVER - GAY TIMES - Since co-founding the Manchester AIDS Line in 1985, Paul Fairweather has continued to be a fearless advocate for people living with HIV.
When the first cases of HIV were identified in the 1980s, virtually nothing was known about the virus except that it was fatal for those who contracted it. Initially referred to as Gay Related Immune Deficiency (GRID), gay and bisexual men in particular faced unparalleled levels of stigma in society because of the way HIV disproportionately affected them – something that only made LGBTQIA+ advocacy tougher at the time. “I worked full time on lesbian and gay equality, which was very unusual in those days,” says Paul Fairweather, a renowned human rights activist who has been at the forefront of the community response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the UK since it started. “I think in the beginning of the 1980s, things were beginning to change and improve and then I think HIV really, particularly in terms of stigmatising gay men, put things on hold in a way.”
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Hastings Prince Edward Public Health offering free, at-home HIV tests
February 14, 2024 - By Shane Gibson - GLOBAL NEWS - Hastings Prince Edward Public Health is offering free, at-home HIV testing kits to mark Sexual and Reproductive Health Awareness Week.
The health authority is partnering with University of Ottawa-based GetaKit to offer the free self-test kits for residents over 16 years of age.
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Stopping HIV in its tracks
13-Feb-2024 - UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES - Just over a year ago, the European Union and the US Food and Drug Administration approved a new anti-retroviral drug to treat human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections. Lenacapavir is the first drug available to patients that is designed to home in on the HIV’s protective armour – the HIV capsid.
An international team of researchers led by UNSW Sydney medical researchers now have the details on how this novel drug pushes the HIV capsid to breaking point, stopping the virus in its tracks. The molecular mechanisms that they uncovered are published in the journal eLife, and could help to refine and design more effective anti-viral therapies.
Study Reveals Accelerated Aging in Women Living With HIV
13-Feb-2024 - Newswise - Rutgers University-New Brunswick - A Rutgers Health professor and other researchers examined how aging affects the bones and muscles of women diagnosed with HIV
Women with HIV experience accelerated DNA aging, a phenomenon that can lead to poor physical function, according to a study led by Stephanie Shiau, an assistant professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the Rutgers School of Public Health.
Published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases, the study sheds light on the unique challenges faced by women with HIV as they age and opens avenues for tailored interventions to enhance health outcomes. Globally, over 50 percent of individuals living with HIV are women, and women accounted for an estimated 46 percent of all new infections in 2022.
Women with HIV experience higher rates of bone loss compared to women without the virus, which can place them at increased risk of fracture as they age, according to results from the Women’s Interagency HIV Study.
New Trial Highlights Incremental Progress Towards a Cure for HIV-1
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - February 13, 2024 - UNC School of Medicine - Cynthia L. Gay, MD, MPH, associate professor of infectious diseases, and David Margolis, MD, the Sarah Kenan Distinguished Professor of Medicine, Microbiology & Immunology, and Epidemiology in the UNC School of Medicine, published results of a clinical trial showing that vorinostat and immunotherapy may modestly shrink the latent HIV reservoir.
Antiretroviral therapies (ART) stop HIV replication in its tracks, allowing people with HIV to live relatively normal lives. However, despite these treatments, some HIV still lingers inside cells in a dormant state known as “latency.” If ART is discontinued, HIV will awaken from its dormant state, begin to replicate, and cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). To create a cure, researchers have been attempting to drive HIV out of latency and target it for destruction.
A new clinical trial led by Cynthia Gay, MD, MPH, associate professor of infectious diseases, David Margolis, MD, the Sarah Kenan Distinguished Professor of Medicine, Microbiology & Immunology, and Epidemiology, and other clinicians and researchers at the UNC School of Medicine suggests that a combination of the drug vorinostat and immunotherapy can coax HIV-infected cells out of latency and attack them.
Message from the Minister of Health, the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health, and the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth of Canada – Sexual Health Week
February 12, 2024 - Ottawa, Ontario - Public Health Agency of Canada - Every year in February, we mark Sexual Health Week in Canada to raise awareness and promote resources to improve sexual health. This year’s theme “Sexual Health is for Everyone” emphasizes that sexual health is an important part of our overall health, at all ages. We also know that 2SLGBTQI+, Indigenous, Black and racialized communities, people with disabilities, immigrants and migrants, as well as women and youth, are all underserved groups, and often lack access to health information.
Sexual health is directly related to our mental and sexual wellbeing, the development of our bodies, and our ability to have healthy relationships.
Sexual health also means being informed, having a positive and respectful approach to sexuality, understanding consent and having the right information to make informed decisions about our bodies.
AHF Rolls Out Condom Extravaganza for Sexy Holiday
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- February 12, 2024 - AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) - 40-plus global AHF teams promote pre-Valentine’s International Condom Day with fun, eye-catching events and advocacy; U.S. brings provocative, sold-out “A Westside Story Burlesque Show” to NYC, Chicago, and DC
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is celebrating International Condom Day – the day before Valentine’s Day – with worldwide activities highlighting the importance of using condoms to practice safer sex. AHF teams in more than 40 countries will hold events to educate on condom use, distribute free condoms, and encourage everyone to start or continue using condoms regularly. In the U.S., AHF is staging its wildly popular, sold-out “A Westside Story Burlesque Show” in New York City, Chicago, and Washington, DC.
Tackling HIV stigma: Why it’s important and what needs to be done
Feb 12, 2024 - Feb 12, 2024by Jason M. Lo Hog Tian Shyamaly Vasuthevan James Watson - Healthy Debate - Experiences of HIV-related stigma are still incredibly high in Canada – about 75 per cent of people living with HIV are careful telling others because of the associated stigma, according to a recent survey. However, given the continued lack of understanding about how stigma makes people feel unwell, it is a challenge to design solutions to reduce its impact.
The People Living with HIV Stigma Index is a global survey tool that has been implemented in more than 100 countries and aims to document lived experiences of stigma and discrimination. The team at Reach Nexus, a national research group working on ways to address HIV and other sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections and ending the associated stigma, along with its community partners, are implementing the study in Canada; in its first publication, the study team examined how different types of stigma influence each other and intersect with other health risks to impact health and wellbeing.
Sask. organization fears potential funding cut to HIV self-testing kits amid worst rates in Canada
Feb 12, 2024 - Saskatoon - CBC - Province had highest rate of new HIV diagnoses in Canada: 2022 stats
Saskatchewan has the worst rate of new HIV infections in Canada and organizations that provide self-testing kits fear the problem could worsen if federal funding is cut.
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HIV epidemic on the rise again, with more cases in Quebec than national average’
February 10, 2024 - CTV News Montreal - The HIV epidemic is on the rise again in Canada, with an 'alarming increase' of 24.9 per cent in reported cases across the country in 2022, according to the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research.
The Public Health Agency of Canada reported 1,833 new cases of HIV in 2022. Men aged 30 to 39 are the category with the highest rates.
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Researchers Pinpoint Most Likely Source of HIV Rebound Infection
FEBRUARY 9, 2024 - By IDSE News Staff - Infectious Disease Special Edition (IDSE) - “Now, we have evidence that SIV, and therefore potentially HIV, is hiding in specific types of lymph nodes and spleen tissues and is some of the first to reemerge in blood when treatment is stopped.”
ART does an excellent job at suppressing HIV to undetectable levels in the blood. However, small amounts of latent virus hide throughout the body, including in the brain, lungs, gut, spleen, lymph nodes and other organs. Stopping treatment opens the door for the virus to rebound.
Lack of access to health care is partly to blame for skyrocketing HIV rates among gay Black men
February 9, 2024 - The Conversation - Over the past 20 years, people living with HIV in the United States have seen a drastic improvement in their overall quality of life. But the medical achievements that have made those lives better and created longer life expectancies have not benefited all communities.
In fact, some communities still have higher rates of new cases of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. This is especially true for Black gay and bisexual men. Black queer men are six times more likely to die as a result of HIV-related complications when compared with queer men of different races.
In addition, in the most recent available data, Black queer men made up 26% of all new cases of HIV in 2019 despite making up less than 3% of the total U.S. population.
BC-Cfe Webinar: Antiretroviral Drug Interactions Update
BC-CfE webinar Learning Series Event
Cost: Free Registration
Wednesday, February 28th, 2024, 12:00 – 1:00 PM (PST).
This webinar will be presented by:
DErin Ready, BSc (Pharm), ACPR, MPH, AAHIVP.
Presentations will be followed by a discussion where participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and receive real-time responses from presenters.
What’s the Role of Natural Killer Cells in Curing HIV?
February 7, 2024 - By Jeffrey Laurence, M.D. - amfAR - Research question
Last month this update discussed a study of “elite controllers,” people living with HIV (PLWH) who are able to maintain undetectable levels of virus in the absence of antiretroviral therapy (ART).
Conducted by two amfAR-funded scientists, Drs. Mathias Lichterfeld and Xu Yu, the study found high levels of natural killer (NK) cells—cells capable of targeting HIV-infected cells—in these controllers, along with high levels of the immune hormone IL-15. IL-15 can enhance the killer function of NK cells and prolonged their survival. Whether this observation could be translated into an effective treatment and potential cure for the vast majority of PLWH who are not elite controllers was unknown.
Syphilis cases rise in the U.S.
7-Feb-2024 - by American Academy of Dermatology - Syphilis, once nearly eliminated in the United States, continues to resurge, reaching the highest rate of new infections recorded since 1950, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Tuesday.
According to a new C.D.C. report, more than 207,000 cases were diagnosed in 2022, the last year for which data are available. That represents an 80 percent increase since 2018, and 17 percent over the previous year’s tally.
CANFAR UNVEILS “BOLD STRATEGIC” PLAN TO ADDRESS RISE IN HIV CASES AND END THE HIV EPIDEMIC IN CANADA BY THE END OF 2025
TORONTO, Feb. 7, 2024 /CNW/ - Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research (CANFAR) - Catalyzing action in underserved communities, increasing access to HIV testing and linkage to treatment, and funding implementation projects key to achieving goal
CANFAR, the Canadian Foundation for AIDS Research, unveils its strategic plan that responds to the significant rise in new HIV cases across Canada and aims to be a major partner to end the national HIV epidemic by the end of 2025.
Canada saw an increase of 24.9% of new HIV diagnoses in 2022 over 2021, with Saskatchewan and Manitoba leading the country's new diagnosis rate at 19.0 and 13.0 per 100,000 – compared to the national average of 4.7. This rise in new cases has not been seen in over a decade.
Serious bacterial infections causing pneumonia, meningitis on the rise in Alberta
Feb 07, 2024 - Jennifer Lee - CBC - Alberta reported 812 cases of invasive pneumococcal disease last year including 62 deaths
An addictions counsellor who was involved with advising the Saskatchewan government on its move to a "recovery-oriented" addictions model is defending the province's decision to stop providing clean pipes and require people to return used needles to receive new ones.
The province announced its decision on Jan. 18.
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National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day 2024
February 7, 2024 - By Trent Straube - The theme for this year’s #NBHAAD is “Engage, Educate, Empower: Uniting to End HIV/AIDS in Black Communities.”
Wednesday, February 7, marks National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (#NBHAAD) 2024. This year’s theme is, “Engage, Educate, Empower: Uniting to End HIV/AIDS in Black Communities.” Search the hashtag online to fine countless awareness campaigns, educational events and other happenings. Several examples are included throughout this article.
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Study explores weight gain with HIV treatment
February 6, 2024 - by Jan Greene - Kaiser Permanente - Kaiser Permanente researchers find weight gain associated with all types of antiretroviral therapy
A unique study comparing people with HIV starting antiretroviral medication treatment (ART) with demographically similar people without HIV found greater weight gain over 2 years in those with HIV.
The analysis of Kaiser Permanente Northern California patients was published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases.
How T cells combat tuberculosis
6-Feb-2024 - Newswise - La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) - By tracking T cell activity, researchers uncover promising tuberculosis vaccine and drug targets
La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) is working to guide the development of new tuberculosis vaccines and drug therapies.
Now a team of LJI scientists has uncovered important clues to how human T cells combat Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes TB. Their findings were published recently in Nature Communications.
“This research gives us a better understanding of T cell responses to different stages in tuberculosis infection and helps us figure out is there are additional diagnostic targets, vaccine targets, or drug candidates to help people with the disease,” says LJI Research Assistant Professor Cecilia Lindestam Arlehamn, Ph.D., who led the new research in collaboration with LJI Professors Bjoern Peters, Ph.D., and Alessandro Sette, Dr.Biol.Sci.
Unlocking Vitality: The Mind, Brain, and Body Journey of Aging with HIV
A Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Café Scientifique
2pm-4:30pm Eastern on Monday February 12 and 12pm-2:30pm Eastern on Tuesday February 13
Keynote address by Dr. Marie-Josée Brouillette, McGill University
Presentations by Kate Murzin (Realize), Dr. Francisco Ibáñez-Carrasco (University of Toronto), Marvelous Muchenje (University of Toronto), Dr. Rachel Landy (Dalhousie University), Dr. Andrew Eaton (University of Regina), and more!
CAHR/CAGH, University of Regina, Realize and PANACHE have joined forces in an exciting partnership to deliver a cutting-edge workshop on living with HIV and cognition, aging, exercise, and health promoting services, programs and interventions. This workshop is designed to cater to the needs of people living with HIV, communities, service providers, and academics.
Cultiver sa vitalité : le parcours mental, cérébral et corporel du vieillissement avec le VIH
Les Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada (IRSC) Café Scientifique
de 14 h à 16 h 30 (heure de l'Est) le lundi 12 février et de 12 h à 14 h 30 (heure de l'Est) le mardi 13 février
Discours en vedette de la Dre Marie-Josée Brouillette, Université McGill
Présentations de Kate Murzin (Réalise), Dr Francisco Ibáñez-Carrasco (Université de Toronto), Marvelous Muchenje (Université de Toronto), Dre Rachel Landy (Université Dalhousie), Dr Andrew Eaton (Université de Regina), et plus encore !
CAHR/CAGH, University of Regina, Realize and PANACHE have joined forces in an exciting partnership to deliver a cutting-edge workshop on living with HIV and cognition, aging, exercise, and health promoting services, programs and interventions. This workshop is designed to cater to the needs of people living with HIV, communities, service providers, and academics.
Virus ancestry could aid bid to predict next pandemic, study finds
5-Feb-2024 - Newswise - by University of Edinburgh - Virus family history could help scientists identify which strains have potential to become the so-called Disease X that causes the next global pandemic.
A study has identified 70 virus lineages – groups of related viruses – that pose the biggest risk. Viruses from other genetic backgrounds are unlikely to cause a high number of infections in humans, the research shows.
The findings will support ongoing efforts to monitor and prepare for future pandemics, including guiding vaccine and diagnostic development, experts say.
Disease X is the generic term used by the World Health Organization to represent a hypothetical, unidentified pathogen that could pose a significant threat to people.
Involving religious leaders can undermine HIV prevention
5 February 2024 - Dr Dana Rosenfeld - Limited data to guide treatment of HIV-1's milder cousin
Traditionally, international HIV prevention efforts are managed by secular public health organisations or programmes, often internationally funded, that work with local health care providers, statutory organisations, and communities. In the early 2000s, UNICEF introduced a new initiative through which local religious leaders in South Asia, with little or no previous knowledge of HIV, would be invited to join their countries’ HIV prevention efforts. The initiative recognised that religious leaders have great influence on public opinion and people’s behaviour and hoped that through their involvement, these religious leaders would come to adopt a scientific approach to HIV and disseminate appropriate information in their communities.
But a recent paper published in Anthropology and Medicine, drawing on ethnographic research conducted at Pakistan’s National AIDS Control Programme (NACP) from 2010-2012, shows that this initiative backfired when adopted in Pakistan.
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Sexually transmitted infections among older adults pose a global public health challenge
February 5, 2024 - Newswise - University of Oslo - People around the world live longer than ever before. The number of people above the age of 60 will almost double by 2050, according to WHO.
As we grow older, our health typically decreases. The immune system becomes weaker, and we become more susceptible to infections. This includes HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as syphilis, chlamydia, gonorrhoea, trichomoniasis, and genital herpes.
“HIV and other STIs are equally prevalent in the sexually active older population as in the young population, “says Evandro Fei Fang, Associate Professor at the Institute of Clinical Medicine at the University of Oslo.
“The number of people avoiding vaccination is a concern”: Measles, what you need to know from an expert in Public Health
February 5, 2024 - University of Warwick - Dr Sophie Martucci is an expert in Public Health from the School of Life Sciences at the University of Warwick. As part of her agents of infectious disease module and science communication model, she covers the MMR Vaccine and the unnecessary controversy around the vaccination.
Dr Martucci says “The number of people avoiding vaccination is a concern”. She continued “Unfortunately, historical, erroneous claims, incorrectly linking the vaccine to autism still prevent some parents from vaccinating their child, despite the study being debunked and the person leading those highly flawed studies no longer allowed to practice medicine in the country for fabricating the data.”
There have also subsequently been many studies from many different research groups showing that the MMR vaccine (which is used to treat measles mumps and rubella) is safe to be used in the majority of the population.
Why L.A.’s battle against a deadly disease relies on unpaid volunteers
FEB. 4, 2024 - BY EMILY ALPERT REYES - Los angeles Times - Bruce is a volunteer in the enduring fight against hepatitis C. The stealthy killer claims the lives of roughly 14,000 Americans each year, even though it can be readily cured with a few months of pills. Many people have no idea they are infected, going years without symptoms before the blood-borne virus devastates the liver.
Yet public funding to combat hepatitis C is so scant that in Los Angeles County — an area more populous than many states — the crucial work of contacting those who are infected is being done by unpaid emissaries like Bruce through a fledgling initiative called Project Connect.
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Visiting physician to UB’s CIGBS examining clinical pharmacology intersection of HIV drugs, antidepressants
BUFFALO, N.Y. - February 2, 2024 - By Laurie Kaiser - University at Buffalo - While HIV is no longer the death sentence it once was, those who become infected with the disease often experience high levels of depression, according to Waheed Adedeji, an international visiting scholar at the University at Buffalo Center for Integrated Global Biomedical Sciences (CIGBS).
“More people are living longer with HIV, and because of that, they suffer from more non-communicable co-morbidities, including depression,” said Adedeji, a physician scientist with training in internal medicine and clinical pharmacology at the University of Ibadan College of Medicine in Nigeria who is wrapping up a three-month visit to UB in February.
COVID-19 vaccination in people with HIV, a pending issue
February 2, 2024 - Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute - Two studies by CEEISCAT with the PISCIS cohort show that people living with HIV have been less vaccinated with the full initial regimen against COVID-19
In December, the journal Vaccines published an analysis of COVID-19 vaccination coverage among people with HIV in Catalonia between December 2020 and July 2022. The article, resulting from a study funded by the Fundació La Marató de TV3 and led by the Centre for Epidemiological Studies on HIV/AIDS and STI of Catalonia (CEEISCAT), a group from the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), in collaboration with researchers from the PISCIS Cohort group, evaluates the primary, monovalent, and booster doses. This research aims to develop concrete action plans tailored to specific profiles to facilitate and promote vaccination.
Nope, Magic Johnson Has Not Been Cured of HIV
February 2, 2024 - By Trent Straube - New falsehoods claim that Dr. Sebi cured Magic Johnson of HIV. The truth is the basketball icon is thriving with the virus. Here’s how.
Once again false rumors about a cured Magic Johnson are gaining traction on social media. To be absolutely clear, the truth is that sports icon Magic Johnson has not been cured of HIV. In fact, 2024 will mark his 33rd year of living, and thriving, with HIV, the virus that can cause AIDS.
The basketball great has been the topic of conspiracy theories since he shocked the world by disclosing his HIV-positive status on November 7, 1991, at the height of his Lakers fame and at a time when HIV was widely considered a death sentence; effective HIV treatment didn’t become available until 1996.
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GLAD Mourns the Loss of Larry Kessler
February 2, 2024 - GLAD - GLAD mourns the passing of Larry Kessler, a national leader and community organizer from Boston who helped spearhead Massachusetts and the nation’s response to the AIDS pandemic.
Larry co-founded AIDS Action Committee (AAC) of Massachusetts in 1983 and led the organization as Executive Director until 2003. He played a leading role in advocating at the state, local, and federal levels for fair and effective AIDS policy and funding.
Too many older people with HIV taking medicines they may not need
2 February 2024- Keith Alcorn - aidsmap - Medicines that raise the risk of falls and confusion being prescribed for too long, without regular checks
A high proportion of older people with HIV are taking medicines they do not need that could increase the risk of falls and confusion, Spanish researchers have found in a review of studies looking at inappropriate medication prescribing in people with HIV.
The review, published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, highlights the importance of regular checks on medications to ensure that prescriptions are appropriate for a person's current medical condition and that some types of medicine used for the treatment of anxiety and depression are not being prescribed beyond their recommended periods.
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What Is Going on With the CDC When It Comes to Ending the HIV Epidemic?
Feb 1, 2024 -Tim Murphy - TheBody - How is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) functioning in the wake of a sharp, COVID-sparked decline in trust of science and public health messaging? Especially when it comes to playing its role in the federal initiative to end the HIV epidemic by 2030? In January, TheBody put this question to eight advocates and public health professionals—and their responses were not encouraging.
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HIV Discovery | Check This Out
Feb 1, 2024 - Duke University - As the HIV virus glides up outside a human cell to dock and possibly inject its deadly cargo of genetic code, there’s a spectacularly brief moment in which a tiny piece of its surface snaps open to begin the process of infection.
Being able to attach an antibody specifically to this little structure that would prevent it from popping open would be key.
UNAIDS Executive Director: let women and girls lead to protect and advance human rights globally
OSLO/GENEVA, 1 February 2024 - UNAIDS - At a conference hosted in Oslo by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), UNAIDS Executive Director, Winnie Byanyima, has made an impassioned call to all international partners to support women and girls from marginalized communities at the frontlines of the defence of human rights. Only by ensuring that the rights of everyone are protected can the world ensure that the health of everyone is protected, and that the Sustainable Development Goals are achieved.
In her keynote speech at the Rights and Resistance conference Ms Byanyima said, “We cannot separate sustainable development from human rights. We must put human rights at the centre of our development efforts. The AIDS movement, of which I am proud to be part, has been resolute in this. We have demonstrated how patriarchal, racist, and homophobic laws, policies, practices and norms undermine health and hurt everyone.”
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