Supporting the START Study

The Treatment Action Group (TAG), based in New York City, requests endorsements for the START Study by April 30. The following is taken from a TAG release.“We are requesting individual and organizational endorsements in support of a statement from the INSIGHT (International Network for Strategic Initiatives in Global HIV Trials) Community Advisory Board, one of six HIV clinical trials networks funded by the National Institutes of Health.

“As you may know, the U.S. HIV Treatment Guidelines Panel recently changed its recommendation for when to start HIV treatment, raising it from 350 to 500 CD4 cells. This change was not without controversy, since there is no conclusive evidence that starting treatment earlier is better. A large-scale randomized control trial that could clearly provide this evidence—called START (Strategic Timing of Antiretroviral Treatment)—is still in its critical pilot phase.

“As the result of this new treatment recommendation, there are now concerns that INSIGHT Network’s ability to enroll the expected 4,000 volunteers for START might be jeopardized. What’s more, as we face longer waiting lists for AIDS Drug Assistance Programs and the call for treating everyone who test positive, we need the critical answers that can be provided by the START trial more than ever, or we risk putting people on treatment prematurely, with unknown long-term side effects and the risk of drug resistance in life-long therapy.

“We believe that the priority for HIV-positive people is to have accurate, reliable data on both the risks and benefits of earlier treatment in order to base any decision for when to start treatment. We fully support this study and invite you to endorse the importance of this research.

To read the statement and to lend your support for this important study, please go to: http://www.hivresearchcatalystforum.org/endorse-start-study.

The Friends of AIDS Foundation is dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit: http://www.friendsofaids.org.


Together We Remain Strong!