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An estimated 700 people turned out for last Sunday’s AIDS walk in Calgary, one of many such events held across Canada as part of the Scotiabank AIDS Walk for Life program.
Established 17 years ago, the walks have raised millions of dollars for AIDS service organizations. Organizers say the walks help remind people that AIDS is still a threat to public health.
“I think back in the early ‘80s when it was so prominent, and people were dying, it had a whole community that grew around it and made this wonderful movement to get stuff started,” said Simonne Leblanc, executive director of AIDS Calgary. “I think as time has moved on, it lost its appeal. People need to realize it hasn’t gone away.”
For more information, visit http://www.aidswalkforlife.ca/Home.htm.
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!
Friday, September 30, 2011
Delaware AIDS Walk to Raise Awareness, Funding
The 25th annual AIDS Walk Delaware will be held Saturday in Wilmington, with registration at 9 a.m. in Rockford Park and walk step-off at 10 a.m.
The event’s 5K run gets underway at 8:30 a.m.
The organizers - including AIDS Delaware, the Delaware HIV Consortium, the Ministry of Caring, and the Faith Community Partnership - also are staging AIDS walks in Rehoboth Beach (Oct. 8) and Dover (Oct. 15).
For more information, telephone 302-652-6776 or visit http://aidswalkdelaware.org/.
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!
The event’s 5K run gets underway at 8:30 a.m.
The organizers - including AIDS Delaware, the Delaware HIV Consortium, the Ministry of Caring, and the Faith Community Partnership - also are staging AIDS walks in Rehoboth Beach (Oct. 8) and Dover (Oct. 15).
For more information, telephone 302-652-6776 or visit http://aidswalkdelaware.org/.
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!
Matthews Helps Fight Against AIDS in Wisconsin
The 22nd annual AIDS Walk Wisconsin takes place Saturday in Milwaukee, and Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews has been named its honorary chair.
Matthews told the Green Bay Press-Gazette that he was honored when the walk’s sponsor, the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, asked for his help.
ARCW assists more than 6,300 people affected by HIV/AIDS. For more on the walk, visit http://www.arcw.org.
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!
Matthews told the Green Bay Press-Gazette that he was honored when the walk’s sponsor, the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, asked for his help.
ARCW assists more than 6,300 people affected by HIV/AIDS. For more on the walk, visit http://www.arcw.org.
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!
Chelsea Has Highest HIV Infection Rate in New York, City Says
A neighborhood popular with gay residents has New York City’s highest HIV infection rate, according to city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene data for 2009. Chelsea had 155.3 HIV diagnoses per 100,000 population that year, more than three times the city average. The second-highest rate was in Central Harlem—Morningside Heights, with 127.1 diagnoses per 100,000 population.
About 5 percent of Chelsea residents were living with HIV/AIDS, compared with 1.4 percent for the entire city, the report found. In Chelsea, 75 percent of those diagnosed identified as men who have sex with men, compared with 43 percent of HIV patients citywide. About 54.5 percent of Chelsea’s HIV patients are white, compared with 16.7 percent citywide.
“People are not thinking of HIV as a big deal anymore,” said John Guidry, director of community health and research at Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC). “It’s not the first thing on people’s minds. There may not be a sense of urgency.”
“There’s patterns of people not disclosing to the person you would be partnering with,” Guidry said. “They’re in the moment, and it still stops people from taking steps to protect themselves.”
“There can still be a heightened sense of stigma individually that keeps people quiet,” Guidry said.
The city provides rapid HIV testing in the neighborhood, and in July GMHC opened the storefront Center for HIV Prevention, 244 W. 29th St.
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!
About 5 percent of Chelsea residents were living with HIV/AIDS, compared with 1.4 percent for the entire city, the report found. In Chelsea, 75 percent of those diagnosed identified as men who have sex with men, compared with 43 percent of HIV patients citywide. About 54.5 percent of Chelsea’s HIV patients are white, compared with 16.7 percent citywide.
“People are not thinking of HIV as a big deal anymore,” said John Guidry, director of community health and research at Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC). “It’s not the first thing on people’s minds. There may not be a sense of urgency.”
“There’s patterns of people not disclosing to the person you would be partnering with,” Guidry said. “They’re in the moment, and it still stops people from taking steps to protect themselves.”
“There can still be a heightened sense of stigma individually that keeps people quiet,” Guidry said.
The city provides rapid HIV testing in the neighborhood, and in July GMHC opened the storefront Center for HIV Prevention, 244 W. 29th St.
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!
An X-Rated Lecture for Bubbe and Zayde Warns STDs Aren't Only for the Young
For more than a decade, Dianne Matthew has been conducting sex education programs for residents of gated senior communities in Boca Raton and Delray Beach. While delivering a serious message about STD prevention, Matthew uses humor to put the audience at ease: “I’ll quote Mae West: She said, ‘When I’m good, I’m very good, but when I’m bad, I’m better.’”
“I use blatant language,” but “I try to keep it funny,” said Matthew, a licensed clinical social worker affiliated with South Palm Beach County’s Ruth Rales Jewish Family Service. “They’re not 12-year-old virgins.”
Matthew said she warns attendees that she will use frank language to get her prevention messages across. At a recent program, two women left when she broached the topic of oral sex. “I give them facts, not judgments,” she said. “What’s normal? Norm is the name of some guy in Brooklyn.”
“I say to them, ‘You have to look out for yourself; you think because you can’t get pregnant, you don’t have to be careful,’” Matthew said. “I think, in general, most people are surprised [by the message]. They think it’s not going to happen to them. Most of the women were married to one man for 40 years. In their minds, STDs are for prostitutes.”
“People don’t believe that people over 60 are having sex, but they’re a very sexually active group, especially with Viagra,” Matthew noted.
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!
“I use blatant language,” but “I try to keep it funny,” said Matthew, a licensed clinical social worker affiliated with South Palm Beach County’s Ruth Rales Jewish Family Service. “They’re not 12-year-old virgins.”
Matthew said she warns attendees that she will use frank language to get her prevention messages across. At a recent program, two women left when she broached the topic of oral sex. “I give them facts, not judgments,” she said. “What’s normal? Norm is the name of some guy in Brooklyn.”
“I say to them, ‘You have to look out for yourself; you think because you can’t get pregnant, you don’t have to be careful,’” Matthew said. “I think, in general, most people are surprised [by the message]. They think it’s not going to happen to them. Most of the women were married to one man for 40 years. In their minds, STDs are for prostitutes.”
“People don’t believe that people over 60 are having sex, but they’re a very sexually active group, especially with Viagra,” Matthew noted.
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!
Cancer Virus Screen Will Save Thousands from Extra Smear Tests
Human papillomavirus testing helps health care providers more efficiently triage women with Pap smear results showing borderline or mild cellular abnormalities, a new pilot study shows. UK researchers used HPV testing for liquid-based cytology samples in a study involving more than 10,000 women ages 25-64 at six sites in England.
HPV testing of samples with low-grade abnormalities was used to select women for colposcopy referral. One-third of the women with borderline cytology results did not carry cancer-causing HPV strains targeted by HPV testing, these women were free to go home and return to a routine screening schedule. The other two-thirds were referred to colposcopy, rather than for repeat Pap smear tests to check the initial result.
Currently, women outside the pilot trial sites who have mild or borderline abnormal Pap results are asked to repeat the procedure. Of 3.2 million Pap smears conducted each year in England, 184,000 find borderline or mild abnormalities. The National Health Service’s Cervical Screening Program is expanding the dual HPV/Pap testing approach throughout England.
“Our study shows that adding HPV testing significantly reduces the number of women sent for more invasive tests, when in fact they do not have any serious cervical changes,” said Dr. Sue Moss, a study co-author with the Institute for Cancer Research in Sutton, Surrey.
“The use of HPV testing that this paper reports is currently being incorporated into the screening program nationwide and will be fully rolled out within the next year,” said professor Julietta Patnick, study co-author and director of NHS screening programs. “By incorporating HPV testing into our current screening program in this way, we will be able to significantly reduce the number of repeat cytology tests required and to target our colposcopy services more effectively.”
The full study, “HPV Testing as a Triage for Borderline or Mild Dyskaryosis on Cervical Cytology: Results from the Sentinel Sites Study,” was published in British Journal of Cancer (2011;105:983-988).
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!
HPV testing of samples with low-grade abnormalities was used to select women for colposcopy referral. One-third of the women with borderline cytology results did not carry cancer-causing HPV strains targeted by HPV testing, these women were free to go home and return to a routine screening schedule. The other two-thirds were referred to colposcopy, rather than for repeat Pap smear tests to check the initial result.
Currently, women outside the pilot trial sites who have mild or borderline abnormal Pap results are asked to repeat the procedure. Of 3.2 million Pap smears conducted each year in England, 184,000 find borderline or mild abnormalities. The National Health Service’s Cervical Screening Program is expanding the dual HPV/Pap testing approach throughout England.
“Our study shows that adding HPV testing significantly reduces the number of women sent for more invasive tests, when in fact they do not have any serious cervical changes,” said Dr. Sue Moss, a study co-author with the Institute for Cancer Research in Sutton, Surrey.
“The use of HPV testing that this paper reports is currently being incorporated into the screening program nationwide and will be fully rolled out within the next year,” said professor Julietta Patnick, study co-author and director of NHS screening programs. “By incorporating HPV testing into our current screening program in this way, we will be able to significantly reduce the number of repeat cytology tests required and to target our colposcopy services more effectively.”
The full study, “HPV Testing as a Triage for Borderline or Mild Dyskaryosis on Cervical Cytology: Results from the Sentinel Sites Study,” was published in British Journal of Cancer (2011;105:983-988).
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!
Five Recipients of HIV-Positive Organs Test HIV-Negative: Hospital
On Thursday, Taiwan University Hospital reported that five transplant patients who mistakenly received organs from a deceased HIV-positive donor continue to test HIV-negative. Medical staff started the organ recipients on HIV prophylaxis a day after discovering the transplant error, which occurred on Aug. 24. Two patients remain hospitalized, while three have been discharged, said Chang Shan-Chwen, TUH’s vice superintendent.
TUH has submitted medical treatment plans for the five patients and pledges to cover all treatment expenses, Taiwan health officials said Thursday. TUH also has begun negotiations over compensation for the three patients who have been discharged. All five patients will be evaluated for at least half a year to assess whether they have avoided infection, said Hung Chien-Ching, a TUH physician.
Also on Thursday, health authorities issued an investigative report faulting TUH for human errors that allowed the HIV-positive donor’s organs to be transplanted. TUH transplant team members heard a lab worker indicate over the telephone that the donor’s HIV test results were non-reactive, or HIV-negative; however, no other notification or confirmation method was used to double-check the test result. Another team at Cheng Kung University Hospital, which conducted one of the five transplants, took the TUH team’s word that the donor was HIV-negative. The donor’s HIV-positive test result was only discovered by medical staff after all the transplants were completed.
TUH will be fined 500,000 New Taiwan dollars (US $16,400) for the accident, authorities said. TUH transplant task force leader Ko Wen-tse, who resigned earlier this month after taking responsibility for the mistake, also faces punishment.
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!
TUH has submitted medical treatment plans for the five patients and pledges to cover all treatment expenses, Taiwan health officials said Thursday. TUH also has begun negotiations over compensation for the three patients who have been discharged. All five patients will be evaluated for at least half a year to assess whether they have avoided infection, said Hung Chien-Ching, a TUH physician.
Also on Thursday, health authorities issued an investigative report faulting TUH for human errors that allowed the HIV-positive donor’s organs to be transplanted. TUH transplant team members heard a lab worker indicate over the telephone that the donor’s HIV test results were non-reactive, or HIV-negative; however, no other notification or confirmation method was used to double-check the test result. Another team at Cheng Kung University Hospital, which conducted one of the five transplants, took the TUH team’s word that the donor was HIV-negative. The donor’s HIV-positive test result was only discovered by medical staff after all the transplants were completed.
TUH will be fined 500,000 New Taiwan dollars (US $16,400) for the accident, authorities said. TUH transplant task force leader Ko Wen-tse, who resigned earlier this month after taking responsibility for the mistake, also faces punishment.
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!
Obstacles Slow an Easy Way to Prevent HIV in Men
Male circumcision can cut the risk of female-to-male HIV transmission by 60 percent or more, but mass circumcision campaigns have been slow to gain momentum in Africa. International health authorities in 2007 had hoped to circumcise more than 20 million men - or about 80 percent of men ages 15-49 in 14 African countries - by 2015. However, the 600,000 procedures done so far amount to just 3 percent.
The projected $2 billion cost would be offset by averting 4 million HIV infections and $16.5 billion in associated expenses. Each five to six circumcisions prevents one infection, said Dr. Robert Bailey, a University of Illinois-Chicago epidemiologist, who helped design Kenya’s program. In addition, men undergoing the procedure often agree to HIV testing and counseling on reducing sexual risks.
Kenya’s 330,000 male circumcisions so far represent one-third of its goal but still account for the most progress made among the target countries. Unlike many in Kenya, the Luo tribe did not practice circumcision, and it took months to persuade leaders to back the campaign. Encouragement by Prime Minister Raila Odinga, a Luo, “really opened the floodgates,” Bailey said.
Kenya uses high-volume strategies not tied to a hospital, conducting mass circumcisions during vacation weeks, and deploying mobile teams. Nurses and physician assistants can also perform the procedure.
In contrast, in South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and other countries doctors alone are expected to perform circumcisions. At Orange Farm, South Africa, an assembly-line model, adapted by having nurses perform pre- and post-operative tasks, allows doctors to spend less time per patient. The country has allocated $33 million to male circumcision.
Tanzania, where many males are circumcised, targets areas with low rates of circumcision but high HIV rates. Of the government’s goal of 2.4 million circumcisions, 110,000 have been performed.
Zimbabwe’s program goes door-to-door and into schools, puts on plays about circumcision, and enlisted a popular reggae star, Winky D., to promote the surgery. Some groups that practice traditional circumcisions are now letting doctors perform them, reducing risks.
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!
The projected $2 billion cost would be offset by averting 4 million HIV infections and $16.5 billion in associated expenses. Each five to six circumcisions prevents one infection, said Dr. Robert Bailey, a University of Illinois-Chicago epidemiologist, who helped design Kenya’s program. In addition, men undergoing the procedure often agree to HIV testing and counseling on reducing sexual risks.
Kenya’s 330,000 male circumcisions so far represent one-third of its goal but still account for the most progress made among the target countries. Unlike many in Kenya, the Luo tribe did not practice circumcision, and it took months to persuade leaders to back the campaign. Encouragement by Prime Minister Raila Odinga, a Luo, “really opened the floodgates,” Bailey said.
Kenya uses high-volume strategies not tied to a hospital, conducting mass circumcisions during vacation weeks, and deploying mobile teams. Nurses and physician assistants can also perform the procedure.
In contrast, in South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and other countries doctors alone are expected to perform circumcisions. At Orange Farm, South Africa, an assembly-line model, adapted by having nurses perform pre- and post-operative tasks, allows doctors to spend less time per patient. The country has allocated $33 million to male circumcision.
Tanzania, where many males are circumcised, targets areas with low rates of circumcision but high HIV rates. Of the government’s goal of 2.4 million circumcisions, 110,000 have been performed.
Zimbabwe’s program goes door-to-door and into schools, puts on plays about circumcision, and enlisted a popular reggae star, Winky D., to promote the surgery. Some groups that practice traditional circumcisions are now letting doctors perform them, reducing risks.
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!
Cooperation Key in AIDS Fight, Experts Say: White House Session Here One of Many Planned Across Nation
Birmingham played host Tuesday night to the first in a national series of White House-led strategy sessions on HIV/AIDS. The meeting of health care providers, researchers, public health officials, and community-based leaders was held in the city in part because of the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB)’s reputation for HIV/AIDS research, said Jeffrey Crowley, director of the Office of National AIDS Policy.
As federal officials look to implement the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, released in July 2010, they are seeking input on how to incorporate prevention and care research into HIV programs. “We have a lot of really rich research and people working on the AIDS effort, but we’re kind of working independently,” said Dr. Michael Saag, director of the UAB Center for AIDS Research.
The meeting centered on a panel discussion moderated by Saag. Panelists included representatives from the National Institutes of Health, the Health Resources and Services Administration, state and local health departments, and organizations such as the Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC).
A common thread in the discussion was that people working to prevent and treat HIV must find ways to make health messages relevant to vulnerable populations, particularly in the South. An obstacle in the heavily religious region, said Steve Wakefield, who works to increase minority participation in HIV vaccine trials at FHCRC, is a fear of talking about sex.
“We like to talk about HIV as if it’s a disease that’s somehow divorced from sex, but for most of us, it’s [an STD],” said Wakefield. “So to make sure that research is relevant to the lives of individuals, you really have to talk to people about sex.”
Other meetings are scheduled this fall in Seattle, Philadelphia, Baton Rouge, and Des Moines. For more information, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/onap.
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!
As federal officials look to implement the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, released in July 2010, they are seeking input on how to incorporate prevention and care research into HIV programs. “We have a lot of really rich research and people working on the AIDS effort, but we’re kind of working independently,” said Dr. Michael Saag, director of the UAB Center for AIDS Research.
The meeting centered on a panel discussion moderated by Saag. Panelists included representatives from the National Institutes of Health, the Health Resources and Services Administration, state and local health departments, and organizations such as the Seattle-based Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC).
A common thread in the discussion was that people working to prevent and treat HIV must find ways to make health messages relevant to vulnerable populations, particularly in the South. An obstacle in the heavily religious region, said Steve Wakefield, who works to increase minority participation in HIV vaccine trials at FHCRC, is a fear of talking about sex.
“We like to talk about HIV as if it’s a disease that’s somehow divorced from sex, but for most of us, it’s [an STD],” said Wakefield. “So to make sure that research is relevant to the lives of individuals, you really have to talk to people about sex.”
Other meetings are scheduled this fall in Seattle, Philadelphia, Baton Rouge, and Des Moines. For more information, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/onap.
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!
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Lee Submits Legislation to End HIV Criminalization
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) introduced legislation on Sept. 23 that seeks to “eliminate discrimination in the law for those who have tested positive for HIV.”
Lee’s office said the bill addresses “the serious problem of discrimination in state criminal and civil laws against those who test positive for HIV.”
It would create “incentives and support for states to reform existing policies that use legal authority to target people living with HIV for felony charges and severe punishments for behavior that is otherwise legal or that poses no measureable risk of HIV transmission.”
Thirty-four states and two territories have HIV-specific criminal laws. “Laws that place an additional burden on HIV-positive individuals because of their HIV status lag far behind the medical advances and scientific discoveries in the fight against the epidemic,” Lee said.
The decriminalization of HIV/AIDS is one way we can reduce stigma in our communities, while fighting the epidemic in a rational, holistic and truly rights-based fashion.
The “Repeal Existing Policies that Encourage and Allow Legal HIV Discrimination Act,” (“REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act”), is HR 3053.
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!
Lee’s office said the bill addresses “the serious problem of discrimination in state criminal and civil laws against those who test positive for HIV.”
It would create “incentives and support for states to reform existing policies that use legal authority to target people living with HIV for felony charges and severe punishments for behavior that is otherwise legal or that poses no measureable risk of HIV transmission.”
Thirty-four states and two territories have HIV-specific criminal laws. “Laws that place an additional burden on HIV-positive individuals because of their HIV status lag far behind the medical advances and scientific discoveries in the fight against the epidemic,” Lee said.
The decriminalization of HIV/AIDS is one way we can reduce stigma in our communities, while fighting the epidemic in a rational, holistic and truly rights-based fashion.
The “Repeal Existing Policies that Encourage and Allow Legal HIV Discrimination Act,” (“REPEAL HIV Discrimination Act”), is HR 3053.
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!
Drugs to Curb a Deadly Inheritance
Lesotho, where 23 percent of the population are HIV-positive, is working with UNICEF and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria to test three versions of the “Mother-Baby Pack” for HIV prevention and treatment. Since January, more than 14,000 test packs have been distributed.
When a pregnant woman visits a health clinic and is found to be HIV-positive with a CD4 count above 350, she is given a pack containing the antiretroviral AZT, to be taken starting at 14 weeks of pregnancy. The pack also includes nevirapine for the baby, to be given from birth until the infant is six weeks old.
For HIV-positive mothers with a CD4 count below 350, the pack includes the same medicine and dosing schedule for the baby, along with three, and sometimes four, antiretrovirals for the mother. A third pack, for women who do not have HIV, contains only nutritional supplements.
All the packs have an instructional pamphlet in the local language, Sesotho, and the packages are color-coded to show which drugs to take and when. Pictures are included for women who cannot read.
Some health experts question whether the packs could do more harm than good, since having seven months of medicines could make pregnant women less likely to seek prenatal care. There also is a chance the drugs could be misused and lead to resistance, or that stigma could cause some women to shun the packs.
“We are about to evaluate the program and will be able to objectively respond on the impact,” said Dr. Mpolai M. Moteetee, Lesotho’s director-general of health services. At that point, officials will know “how well the pack is received, the mothers’ capacity to use the medicines properly, and whether it is aiding in proper treatment.”
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!
When a pregnant woman visits a health clinic and is found to be HIV-positive with a CD4 count above 350, she is given a pack containing the antiretroviral AZT, to be taken starting at 14 weeks of pregnancy. The pack also includes nevirapine for the baby, to be given from birth until the infant is six weeks old.
For HIV-positive mothers with a CD4 count below 350, the pack includes the same medicine and dosing schedule for the baby, along with three, and sometimes four, antiretrovirals for the mother. A third pack, for women who do not have HIV, contains only nutritional supplements.
All the packs have an instructional pamphlet in the local language, Sesotho, and the packages are color-coded to show which drugs to take and when. Pictures are included for women who cannot read.
Some health experts question whether the packs could do more harm than good, since having seven months of medicines could make pregnant women less likely to seek prenatal care. There also is a chance the drugs could be misused and lead to resistance, or that stigma could cause some women to shun the packs.
“We are about to evaluate the program and will be able to objectively respond on the impact,” said Dr. Mpolai M. Moteetee, Lesotho’s director-general of health services. At that point, officials will know “how well the pack is received, the mothers’ capacity to use the medicines properly, and whether it is aiding in proper treatment.”
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!
HUD Awards $9M to Improving HIV/AIDS Housing
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded $9 million in grants to projects that improve housing and services for people and families living with HIV, according to a statement from HUD.
The grants will support projects in seven cities offering permanent and transitional housing and support services to more than 200 households over the next three years. The projects will also work to create integrated HIV/AIDS housing plans for their communities.
To read the HUD statement, visit: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/press/press_releases_media_advisories/2011/HUDNo.11-225.
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!
The grants will support projects in seven cities offering permanent and transitional housing and support services to more than 200 households over the next three years. The projects will also work to create integrated HIV/AIDS housing plans for their communities.
To read the HUD statement, visit: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/press/press_releases_media_advisories/2011/HUDNo.11-225.
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!
Marcel van Soest, Executive Director of World AIDS Campaign, Dies
Marcel van Soest, an epidemiologist and the executive director of the World AIDS Campaign (WAC) since 2004, has died, according to a WAC statement.
Van Soest grew WAC from a one-man operation to a small international agency whose projects range from grassroots programs in Africa to global events like World AIDS Day.
After studying epidemiology and social geography at Radboud University in the Netherlands, he earned his master’s degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Van Soest worked for almost 10 years with Medecins Sans Frontieres Holland. He was 46.
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!
Van Soest grew WAC from a one-man operation to a small international agency whose projects range from grassroots programs in Africa to global events like World AIDS Day.
After studying epidemiology and social geography at Radboud University in the Netherlands, he earned his master’s degree in public health from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Van Soest worked for almost 10 years with Medecins Sans Frontieres Holland. He was 46.
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!
Economists Say Adult Circumcision Not Best Anti-HIV Tactic
A cost-benefit analysis of HIV/AIDS investments in sub-Saharan Africa suggests that more resources should be channeled toward vaccine research, an expert panel of economists reported Wednesday. The study, conducted by the panel for Denmark’s state-funded Copenhagen Consensus Center (CCC), evaluated the costs of various interventions per lives saved.
Adult male circumcision can reduce the risk of female-to-male HIV transmission by about 60 percent. But increasing annual AIDS vaccine spending would be a better investment because it could potentially eradicate the disease, said Bjorn Lomborg, CCC’s director.
Preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission, promoting infant male circumcision, and improving blood supply safety also would be high-value investments, the panel said. These interventions “are so cheap and effective” they leap to the top of cost-effective interventions, Lomborg said.
While the World Bank and US State Department support adult male circumcision to prevent HIV, Lomborg said the effort would require “a large public campaign to get people into the clinic.” Recruiting volunteers would not be easy, and “it could cause more risky behavior,” he said.
However, adult male circumcision could be likened to a vaccine, since it cuts infection risk by 60 percent, said Marelize Gorgens, HIV prevention coordinator at the World Bank, who disagrees with the economists. “We need to spend money on things we know work,” Gorgens said.
For more information about CCC, visit: http://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/CCC%20Home%20Page.aspx.
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!
Adult male circumcision can reduce the risk of female-to-male HIV transmission by about 60 percent. But increasing annual AIDS vaccine spending would be a better investment because it could potentially eradicate the disease, said Bjorn Lomborg, CCC’s director.
Preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission, promoting infant male circumcision, and improving blood supply safety also would be high-value investments, the panel said. These interventions “are so cheap and effective” they leap to the top of cost-effective interventions, Lomborg said.
While the World Bank and US State Department support adult male circumcision to prevent HIV, Lomborg said the effort would require “a large public campaign to get people into the clinic.” Recruiting volunteers would not be easy, and “it could cause more risky behavior,” he said.
However, adult male circumcision could be likened to a vaccine, since it cuts infection risk by 60 percent, said Marelize Gorgens, HIV prevention coordinator at the World Bank, who disagrees with the economists. “We need to spend money on things we know work,” Gorgens said.
For more information about CCC, visit: http://www.copenhagenconsensus.com/CCC%20Home%20Page.aspx.
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!
CDC Awards Atlanta AIDS Organizations Large Grants on Gay Men's HIV Awareness Day
Thirty-four community-based organizations (CBOs) in 19 states and Puerto Rico will share $55 million to help prevent HIV in gay and bisexual men of color, transgender youth of color, and their partners, CDC announced Tuesday.
“On this National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, we are reminded of the urgency of the HIV epidemic in the United States and the dramatic impact among gay and bisexual men, who account for more than 60 percent of new infections,” said Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of CDC’s Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention. “We must also recognize that the epidemic cannot be overcome without effectively addressing the severe and rising toll of HIV infections among gay and bisexual men of color, who continue to be hardest hit by this disease.”
“The new CDC awards are designed to enable CBOs with strong links to these populations to meet their specific HIV prevention needs,” CDC’s statement said. “As part of these awards, each organization will be required to provide specific prevention services. These include providing HIV testing to a total of more than 90,000 young gay and bisexual men and transgender youth of color, with a goal of identifying more than 3,500 previously unrecognized HIV infections (over the five-year funding period), and linking those who are HIV-infected to care and prevention services.”
“CBOs will also carry out proven behavioral change HIV prevention programs and distribute condoms to young gay and bisexual men and transgender youth of color who are at high risk for HIV or are HIV-infected,” CDC said.
The grants average approximately $300,000 per CBO per year. AID Atlanta will receive $381,888 each year for five years, and Atlanta-based Positive Impact will receive $250,000 annually for the same time period.
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!
“On this National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day, we are reminded of the urgency of the HIV epidemic in the United States and the dramatic impact among gay and bisexual men, who account for more than 60 percent of new infections,” said Dr. Jonathan Mermin, director of CDC’s Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention. “We must also recognize that the epidemic cannot be overcome without effectively addressing the severe and rising toll of HIV infections among gay and bisexual men of color, who continue to be hardest hit by this disease.”
“The new CDC awards are designed to enable CBOs with strong links to these populations to meet their specific HIV prevention needs,” CDC’s statement said. “As part of these awards, each organization will be required to provide specific prevention services. These include providing HIV testing to a total of more than 90,000 young gay and bisexual men and transgender youth of color, with a goal of identifying more than 3,500 previously unrecognized HIV infections (over the five-year funding period), and linking those who are HIV-infected to care and prevention services.”
“CBOs will also carry out proven behavioral change HIV prevention programs and distribute condoms to young gay and bisexual men and transgender youth of color who are at high risk for HIV or are HIV-infected,” CDC said.
The grants average approximately $300,000 per CBO per year. AID Atlanta will receive $381,888 each year for five years, and Atlanta-based Positive Impact will receive $250,000 annually for the same time period.
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!
HIV Privacy Concerns at North Carolina Health Department
Columbus County is the 11th highest in the state for known HIV cases, but according to some HIV advocates, infected people aren't getting the treatment they need due to privacy concerns.
Two people with the disease reached out to WECT to voice their concerns regarding the privacy issues at the county's health department. They applaud the department for their efforts in regards to HIV treatments, but would like to see more privacy policies implemented.
"You're sitting in there with the WIC people, Planned Parenthood," explained an HIV patient. "I'm 48 years old, you know I'm not here for Planned Parenthood. Plus, everyone knows the third Friday of every month is HIV day."
According to Health Director Kim Smith, the department just hosts the infectious disease clinic and doctors from Wilmington decided to make it the third Friday because it's convenient for them.
Some people believe patients with HIV should be allowed to use a side entrance to extend their privacy, but Smith said it is policy to have everyone come through the front door for security reasons.
"Our employees are trained with privacy laws and they would be let go in a heartbeat," said Smith. "We keep files in a lock and key. Privacy is very important."
Smith said the department is working to get a screen that displays numbers to notify patients when it's their turn to see a doctor instead of having their name or number called.
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!
Two people with the disease reached out to WECT to voice their concerns regarding the privacy issues at the county's health department. They applaud the department for their efforts in regards to HIV treatments, but would like to see more privacy policies implemented.
"You're sitting in there with the WIC people, Planned Parenthood," explained an HIV patient. "I'm 48 years old, you know I'm not here for Planned Parenthood. Plus, everyone knows the third Friday of every month is HIV day."
According to Health Director Kim Smith, the department just hosts the infectious disease clinic and doctors from Wilmington decided to make it the third Friday because it's convenient for them.
Some people believe patients with HIV should be allowed to use a side entrance to extend their privacy, but Smith said it is policy to have everyone come through the front door for security reasons.
"Our employees are trained with privacy laws and they would be let go in a heartbeat," said Smith. "We keep files in a lock and key. Privacy is very important."
Smith said the department is working to get a screen that displays numbers to notify patients when it's their turn to see a doctor instead of having their name or number called.
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!
Promising Results from MVA-B HIV Vaccine Trial
Researchers at the Spanish Superior Scientific Research Council (CSIC) have successfully completed Phase I human clinical trials of a HIV vaccine that came out with top marks after 90% of volunteers developed an immunological response against the virus. The MVA-B vaccine draws on the natural capabilities of the human immune system and "has proven to be as powerful as any other vaccine currently being studied, or even more", says Mariano Esteban, head researcher from CSIC's National Biotech Centre.
The MVA-B vaccine first showed promising signs back in 2008 when clinical trials involving mice and macaque monkeys demonstrated a very high efficiency against Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV). The recent human trials involved 30 healthy volunteers, where 24 were treated with MVA-B, while the other 6 were treated with a placebo, carried out over a 48 week period.
Development of MVA-B is based on the insertion of four HIV genes in a previously used vaccine (MVA) for smallpox. When injected with the vaccine, a healthy immune system can react against the MVA, whilst the HIV genes are incapable of self-replicating. This guarantees a safe clinical trial for HIV free volunteers. Furthermore by trialing the vaccine on healthy patients, the immune system can learn how to detect and combat the HIV virus components. "It is like showing a picture of the HIV so that it is able to recognize it if it sees it again in the future", says Esteban.
"Our body is full of lymphocytes, each of them programmed to fight against a different pathogen" continued Esteban. "Training is needed when it involves a pathogen, like the HIV one, which cannot be naturally defeated".
The trial demonstrated how the vaccine stimulates the production of lymphocytes B, which produces HIV attacking antibodies that block the virus from infecting healthy cells. Blood tests during the 48th week revealed that 72.7% of the treated volunteers had developed these HIV fighting antibodies. However generating a long lasting response against future attacks truly renders the vaccine effective. This is achieved when the body maintains a basic memory level of T lymphocytes, which are generated after the first attack and can circulate the body for years. The T lymphocytes are responsible for stimulating the attacked cell's immune response, which can then identify and destroy the HIV virus. Blood tests during the 48th week revealed that the 85% of the patients maintained the memory T lymphocytes immune response.
"MVA-B immune profile meets, initially, the requirements for a promising HIV vaccine," says Esteban. Although it does not remove the virus from the body, the immune response induced by the vaccine could keep the virus under control by destroying the infected cell.
According to CSIC, "if this genetic cocktail passes Phase II and Phase III future clinic trials, and makes it into production, in the future HIV could be compared to herpes virus nowadays".
Phase I clinic trials will also commence with HIV infected volunteers to test its efficiency as a therapeutic vaccine.
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!
The MVA-B vaccine first showed promising signs back in 2008 when clinical trials involving mice and macaque monkeys demonstrated a very high efficiency against Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV). The recent human trials involved 30 healthy volunteers, where 24 were treated with MVA-B, while the other 6 were treated with a placebo, carried out over a 48 week period.
Development of MVA-B is based on the insertion of four HIV genes in a previously used vaccine (MVA) for smallpox. When injected with the vaccine, a healthy immune system can react against the MVA, whilst the HIV genes are incapable of self-replicating. This guarantees a safe clinical trial for HIV free volunteers. Furthermore by trialing the vaccine on healthy patients, the immune system can learn how to detect and combat the HIV virus components. "It is like showing a picture of the HIV so that it is able to recognize it if it sees it again in the future", says Esteban.
"Our body is full of lymphocytes, each of them programmed to fight against a different pathogen" continued Esteban. "Training is needed when it involves a pathogen, like the HIV one, which cannot be naturally defeated".
The trial demonstrated how the vaccine stimulates the production of lymphocytes B, which produces HIV attacking antibodies that block the virus from infecting healthy cells. Blood tests during the 48th week revealed that 72.7% of the treated volunteers had developed these HIV fighting antibodies. However generating a long lasting response against future attacks truly renders the vaccine effective. This is achieved when the body maintains a basic memory level of T lymphocytes, which are generated after the first attack and can circulate the body for years. The T lymphocytes are responsible for stimulating the attacked cell's immune response, which can then identify and destroy the HIV virus. Blood tests during the 48th week revealed that the 85% of the patients maintained the memory T lymphocytes immune response.
"MVA-B immune profile meets, initially, the requirements for a promising HIV vaccine," says Esteban. Although it does not remove the virus from the body, the immune response induced by the vaccine could keep the virus under control by destroying the infected cell.
According to CSIC, "if this genetic cocktail passes Phase II and Phase III future clinic trials, and makes it into production, in the future HIV could be compared to herpes virus nowadays".
Phase I clinic trials will also commence with HIV infected volunteers to test its efficiency as a therapeutic vaccine.
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!
Viread Dropped From Women’s HIV PrEP Study; Truvada Evaluation Continues
A study involving women at risk of HIV infection has discontinued a comparison of daily Viread (tenofovir) pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to placebo, in light of expert projections that the clinical trial will not be able to demonstrate effectiveness, according to a September 28 Microbicide Trials Network (MTN) announcement. The Vaginal and Oral Interventions to Control the Epidemic (VOICE) study will, however, continue evaluating the safety and efficacy of another oral tablet, Truvada (tenofovir plus emtricitabine), along with a vaginal microbicide containing tenofovir.
Though PrEP has been proven at least moderately effective in a large international study of men who have sex with men (MSM), its efficacy among women in studies has been checkered.
A study reported in April 2011, dubbed FEM-PrEP, yielded disappointing results. According to a planned interim check of the data, the study monitors found an equal number of new HIV infections among women using Truvada PrEP compared with those using placebo.
All eyes then fell on the African Partners PrEP and TDF2 studies to determine whether antiretrovirals (ARVs), used by women (and heterosexual men) at risk for HIV infection, could potentially serve as an effective prevention tool.
In Partners PrEP, Viread and Truvada reduced the risk of contracting HIV by 62 percent and 73 percent, respectively, among mixed-status heterosexual couples.
In TDF-2, which was primarily designed as a safety study, Truvada reduced new HIV infections by at least 63 percent among mostly single heterosexual men and women. However, some gender differences were noted by the researchers. Throughout the study, there were seven infection among women in the Truvada group and 14 infections among women in the placebo group, but this difference was not statistically significant, meaning it could have occurred by chance. Among men, with two and 10 infections respectively, the difference was statistically significant.
With the VOICE Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) recommendation to stop the Viread arm of the study, for the same reason cited during the review of the FEM-PrEP interim analysis, the potential utility of PrEP for women remains unclear.
VOICE involves 5,029 women at 15 trial sites in Uganda, South Africa and Zimbabwe. The trial is being conducted by the MTN, an HIV/AIDS clinical trials network funded by the National Institutes of Health.
The study was designed with five study groups: tenofovir gel, an inactive placebo gel, oral Viread, oral Truvada and an inactive placebo tablet, all taken once daily. VOICE is the only trial evaluating the daily use of PrEP and a vaginal microbicide in the same study.
On September 16, 2011, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Prevention Trials DSMB reviewed VOICE study data for the period between September 9, 2009, when the study began, and July 1, 2011. Based on this interim review, the DSMB determined that it was not possible to show whether oral Viread tablets were any better than a placebo for preventing HIV in the women assigned to that study group.
The DSMB recommended that the women randomized to the oral Viread group discontinue their use of the study medication. The MTN researchers did not cite any actual data—notably HIV infection rates among those taking Viread tablets compared with those taking placebo tablets—in their September 28 announcement.
The DSMB recommendation does not apply to the women in the groups using either the tenofovir gel or oral Truvada tablets, or the corresponding placebos; the DSMB recommended that these four study groups continue in VOICE.
“Taken together, the data leave a range of questions on how oral and topical PrEP might be used as a prevention strategy for women,” said Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC, a global HIV prevention advocacy group, in a September 28 statement. “One of the most important questions to answer with urgency is which strategies will work for women throughout their lives, and VOICE will continue to be a key trial for answering this question. The different PrEP results we’ve seen in the past year underscore the need for close coordination of clinical trials testing the same or similar strategies and of planning for implementation.”
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!
Though PrEP has been proven at least moderately effective in a large international study of men who have sex with men (MSM), its efficacy among women in studies has been checkered.
A study reported in April 2011, dubbed FEM-PrEP, yielded disappointing results. According to a planned interim check of the data, the study monitors found an equal number of new HIV infections among women using Truvada PrEP compared with those using placebo.
All eyes then fell on the African Partners PrEP and TDF2 studies to determine whether antiretrovirals (ARVs), used by women (and heterosexual men) at risk for HIV infection, could potentially serve as an effective prevention tool.
In Partners PrEP, Viread and Truvada reduced the risk of contracting HIV by 62 percent and 73 percent, respectively, among mixed-status heterosexual couples.
In TDF-2, which was primarily designed as a safety study, Truvada reduced new HIV infections by at least 63 percent among mostly single heterosexual men and women. However, some gender differences were noted by the researchers. Throughout the study, there were seven infection among women in the Truvada group and 14 infections among women in the placebo group, but this difference was not statistically significant, meaning it could have occurred by chance. Among men, with two and 10 infections respectively, the difference was statistically significant.
With the VOICE Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) recommendation to stop the Viread arm of the study, for the same reason cited during the review of the FEM-PrEP interim analysis, the potential utility of PrEP for women remains unclear.
VOICE involves 5,029 women at 15 trial sites in Uganda, South Africa and Zimbabwe. The trial is being conducted by the MTN, an HIV/AIDS clinical trials network funded by the National Institutes of Health.
The study was designed with five study groups: tenofovir gel, an inactive placebo gel, oral Viread, oral Truvada and an inactive placebo tablet, all taken once daily. VOICE is the only trial evaluating the daily use of PrEP and a vaginal microbicide in the same study.
On September 16, 2011, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Prevention Trials DSMB reviewed VOICE study data for the period between September 9, 2009, when the study began, and July 1, 2011. Based on this interim review, the DSMB determined that it was not possible to show whether oral Viread tablets were any better than a placebo for preventing HIV in the women assigned to that study group.
The DSMB recommended that the women randomized to the oral Viread group discontinue their use of the study medication. The MTN researchers did not cite any actual data—notably HIV infection rates among those taking Viread tablets compared with those taking placebo tablets—in their September 28 announcement.
The DSMB recommendation does not apply to the women in the groups using either the tenofovir gel or oral Truvada tablets, or the corresponding placebos; the DSMB recommended that these four study groups continue in VOICE.
“Taken together, the data leave a range of questions on how oral and topical PrEP might be used as a prevention strategy for women,” said Mitchell Warren, executive director of AVAC, a global HIV prevention advocacy group, in a September 28 statement. “One of the most important questions to answer with urgency is which strategies will work for women throughout their lives, and VOICE will continue to be a key trial for answering this question. The different PrEP results we’ve seen in the past year underscore the need for close coordination of clinical trials testing the same or similar strategies and of planning for implementation.”
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!
HIV Charges Dropped Against Former Olympic Equestrian
Darren Chiacchia's lawyer Baron Coleman tells WCTV, all charges have been dropped against Darren who was accused of having sex with a partner without informing him he was infected with HIV.
The hearing took place today in Ocala and lasted less than 15 minutes. The judge heard both sides and dismissed the case. Neither Darren nor his attorney were present for the hearing which was done via teleconference. against Darren Hearing today, all charges dropped against Darren Chiacchia.
They can always appeal if they want to. That option is always out there.
Chiacchia’s partner alleged that he had initially told him he was not positive for any infection.
In Florida, is it illegal to knowingly have sex with another person while HIV positive without telling the other person beforehand.
The victim had an email allegedly from Chiacchia in which the former Olympian admitted to knowing he was infected with the disease in 2008.
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!
The hearing took place today in Ocala and lasted less than 15 minutes. The judge heard both sides and dismissed the case. Neither Darren nor his attorney were present for the hearing which was done via teleconference. against Darren Hearing today, all charges dropped against Darren Chiacchia.
They can always appeal if they want to. That option is always out there.
Chiacchia’s partner alleged that he had initially told him he was not positive for any infection.
In Florida, is it illegal to knowingly have sex with another person while HIV positive without telling the other person beforehand.
The victim had an email allegedly from Chiacchia in which the former Olympian admitted to knowing he was infected with the disease in 2008.
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!
HIV Antibody Therapy Ibalizumab Inches Forward
Long-awaited results from a Phase II study of ibalizumab, an antibody-based therapy that has been in early stage development for several years, were reported at the 51st Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy (ICAAC) on September 17 in Chicago. Though the results raise more questions than answers about the drug’s efficacy, the presenting researchers conclude that ibalizumab holds potential for HIV treatment veterans in need of novel therapies.
Ibalizumab is an experimental entry inhibitor being developed by TaiMed Biologics, a biotechnology company with research facilities in Taiwan and Irvine, California. The drug contains genetically engineered antibodies, known as monoclonal antibodies. These antibodies bind to the CD4 receptor on CD4 cells. Once ibalizumab binds to these receptors, HIV cannot successfully connect with the surface of CD4 cells, thus preventing the virus from infecting healthy cells.
Because of ibalizumab’s unique mechanism of action, researchers have long believed that the drug holds tremendous promise as an HIV treatment, particularly for people with multiple-drug-resistant strains of the virus.
Ibalizumab is currently administered intravenously in an outpatient setting. To date, the drug has been given by researchers once weekly and every other week, using a dose that depends on body weight.
With the successful completion of a variety of early stage studies, including a 48-week Phase IIa study reported in 2006 demonstrating statistically significant viral load reductions compared with placebo, a Phase IIb study was started in August 2008. Twenty-four week data from the latest study were reported at ICAAC by Stanley Lewis, MD, PhD, of TaiMed.
Unlike the weight-based dosing used previously, the Phase IIb study explored two fixed doses: 800 milligrams (mg) administered intravenously once every two weeks and 2,000 mg given every four weeks. The clinical trial enrolled 113 people living with HIV with resistance to multiple drugs, including at least one drug in the three major classes of antiretrovirals (the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and the protease inhibitors).
Both doses were combined with an optimized background regimen containing at least one drug the patients’ viruses were sensitive to. Of note, no placebo for comparison purposes was used in the study.
After 24 weeks, viral loads were reduced, on average, by 1.5 log in both treatment groups. Undetectable viral loads were documented in 44 percent of those in the 800 mg ibalizumab group and 28 percent in the 2,000 mg ibalizumab group. CD4 counts increased by 63 cells and 80 cells, respectively.
Though these viral load reductions are notable, the lack of a placebo group in the study prevents firm conclusions about ibalizumab’s potential. For example, it remains unclear how much of the viral load reductions seen in both treatment groups were attributed to the ARVs used in combination with ibalizumab.
Encouragingly, Lewis reported that ibalizumab was well tolerated with no drug-related deaths, serious side effects or discontinuations. Though some laboratory abnormalities were reported, these were not associated with any “clinically meaningful” problems. The most common side effects were rash, diarrhea, headache and nausea, which appeared to be more common in the 2,000 mg dosing group.
Going forward, TaiMed plans to use the lower dose of the drug to minimize the risk of side effects without compromising efficacy. The company is also experimenting with a subcutaneous version of the drug—administered using a hypodermic needle to deliver ibalizumab directly under the skin—to allow for once-weekly injections at home.
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!
Ibalizumab is an experimental entry inhibitor being developed by TaiMed Biologics, a biotechnology company with research facilities in Taiwan and Irvine, California. The drug contains genetically engineered antibodies, known as monoclonal antibodies. These antibodies bind to the CD4 receptor on CD4 cells. Once ibalizumab binds to these receptors, HIV cannot successfully connect with the surface of CD4 cells, thus preventing the virus from infecting healthy cells.
Because of ibalizumab’s unique mechanism of action, researchers have long believed that the drug holds tremendous promise as an HIV treatment, particularly for people with multiple-drug-resistant strains of the virus.
Ibalizumab is currently administered intravenously in an outpatient setting. To date, the drug has been given by researchers once weekly and every other week, using a dose that depends on body weight.
With the successful completion of a variety of early stage studies, including a 48-week Phase IIa study reported in 2006 demonstrating statistically significant viral load reductions compared with placebo, a Phase IIb study was started in August 2008. Twenty-four week data from the latest study were reported at ICAAC by Stanley Lewis, MD, PhD, of TaiMed.
Unlike the weight-based dosing used previously, the Phase IIb study explored two fixed doses: 800 milligrams (mg) administered intravenously once every two weeks and 2,000 mg given every four weeks. The clinical trial enrolled 113 people living with HIV with resistance to multiple drugs, including at least one drug in the three major classes of antiretrovirals (the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and the protease inhibitors).
Both doses were combined with an optimized background regimen containing at least one drug the patients’ viruses were sensitive to. Of note, no placebo for comparison purposes was used in the study.
After 24 weeks, viral loads were reduced, on average, by 1.5 log in both treatment groups. Undetectable viral loads were documented in 44 percent of those in the 800 mg ibalizumab group and 28 percent in the 2,000 mg ibalizumab group. CD4 counts increased by 63 cells and 80 cells, respectively.
Though these viral load reductions are notable, the lack of a placebo group in the study prevents firm conclusions about ibalizumab’s potential. For example, it remains unclear how much of the viral load reductions seen in both treatment groups were attributed to the ARVs used in combination with ibalizumab.
Encouragingly, Lewis reported that ibalizumab was well tolerated with no drug-related deaths, serious side effects or discontinuations. Though some laboratory abnormalities were reported, these were not associated with any “clinically meaningful” problems. The most common side effects were rash, diarrhea, headache and nausea, which appeared to be more common in the 2,000 mg dosing group.
Going forward, TaiMed plans to use the lower dose of the drug to minimize the risk of side effects without compromising efficacy. The company is also experimenting with a subcutaneous version of the drug—administered using a hypodermic needle to deliver ibalizumab directly under the skin—to allow for once-weekly injections at home.
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!
Theater Seeks Panels for AIDS Memorial Quilt
The Breakthrough Theatre of Winter Park is producing “Quilt: A Musical Celebration,” and is accepting quilt panels made by Central Floridians to honor those lost to AIDS.
Panels should be delivered to the theater, 419A W. Fairbanks Ave., by Nov. 11. The play will be staged Nov. 11-28, with a special World AIDS Day performance on Dec. 1.
After the musical’s run, the panels will become part of the NAMES Project’s AIDS Memorial Quilt, and so they must conform to the organization’s specifications; these may be accessed at http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_stage_theat/2011/09/breakthrough-theatre-seeks-panels-for-national-aids-memorial-quilt.html#more-13884.
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!
Panels should be delivered to the theater, 419A W. Fairbanks Ave., by Nov. 11. The play will be staged Nov. 11-28, with a special World AIDS Day performance on Dec. 1.
After the musical’s run, the panels will become part of the NAMES Project’s AIDS Memorial Quilt, and so they must conform to the organization’s specifications; these may be accessed at http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_stage_theat/2011/09/breakthrough-theatre-seeks-panels-for-national-aids-memorial-quilt.html#more-13884.
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.
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Rapid Testing Sharply Cuts HIV Patient Dropout Rate
The proportion of HIV patients lost to follow-up before the initiation of antiretroviral (ARV) therapy “can exceed 50 percent in low-income settings, and is a challenge to the scale-up of treatment,” according to the authors of a new study. This proportion, however, was dramatically reduced after the introduction of rapid CD4 test kits.
“Before the introduction of point-of-care CD4 tests, to obtain a CD4 result involved several steps, each with delays,” wrote the authors from the Mozambique Instituto Nacional de Sáude and the Clinton Health Access Initiative. On average, the process took 10 days. Considering that many patients must walk long distances to reach a health care facility, each additional clinic visit is seen as a barrier to remaining in care.
After the introduction of CD4 rapid test kits, the proportion of patients lost to follow-up before completion of CD4 staging dropped from 57 percent to 21 percent. Total loss to follow-up before ARV treatment was started dropped from 64 percent to 33 percent. The proportion of enrolled patients who began ARV treatment grew from 12 percent to 22 percent, while the median time from enrollment to beginning treatment fell from 48 days to 20 days, chiefly because the median time to complete CD4 staging decreased from 32 days to 3 days.
“Point-of-care CD4 testing enabled clinics to stage patients rapidly onsite after enrollment, which reduced opportunities for pretreatment loss to follow-up,” the authors concluded. “As a result, more patients were identified as eligible for and initiated [ARV] treatment. Point-of-care testing might therefore be an effective intervention to reduce pretreatment loss to follow-up.”
The study, “Effect of Point-of-Care CD4 Cell Count Tests on Retention of Patients and Rates of Antiretroviral Therapy Initiation in Primary Health Clinics: An Observational Cohort Study,” was published early online in the Lancet (2011; doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)61052-0).
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!
“Before the introduction of point-of-care CD4 tests, to obtain a CD4 result involved several steps, each with delays,” wrote the authors from the Mozambique Instituto Nacional de Sáude and the Clinton Health Access Initiative. On average, the process took 10 days. Considering that many patients must walk long distances to reach a health care facility, each additional clinic visit is seen as a barrier to remaining in care.
After the introduction of CD4 rapid test kits, the proportion of patients lost to follow-up before completion of CD4 staging dropped from 57 percent to 21 percent. Total loss to follow-up before ARV treatment was started dropped from 64 percent to 33 percent. The proportion of enrolled patients who began ARV treatment grew from 12 percent to 22 percent, while the median time from enrollment to beginning treatment fell from 48 days to 20 days, chiefly because the median time to complete CD4 staging decreased from 32 days to 3 days.
“Point-of-care CD4 testing enabled clinics to stage patients rapidly onsite after enrollment, which reduced opportunities for pretreatment loss to follow-up,” the authors concluded. “As a result, more patients were identified as eligible for and initiated [ARV] treatment. Point-of-care testing might therefore be an effective intervention to reduce pretreatment loss to follow-up.”
The study, “Effect of Point-of-Care CD4 Cell Count Tests on Retention of Patients and Rates of Antiretroviral Therapy Initiation in Primary Health Clinics: An Observational Cohort Study,” was published early online in the Lancet (2011; doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(11)61052-0).
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.
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Tourism Ministry Launches HIV/AIDS Awareness Campaign
Jamaica’s Ministry of Tourism is kicking off a new HIV awareness campaign, which features television and radio ads, posters, and other visual aids. Part of the focus includes getting employers in the tourism sector to adopt national HIV/AIDS prevention and employment non-discrimination policies, said Edmond Bartlett, the tourism minister.
Bartlett said these policies “should be practiced in the halls of tourism.” He lauded businesses that have already launched workplace HIV programs, as well as those that have installed on-site condom dispensing machines.
With the help of a $5.5 million (US $64,000) World Bank loan, the campaign will focus on HIV prevention in the workplace; management and mitigation of the disease’s impact in the workplace and tourism sector; provision of HIV/AIDS treatment, care, and support for affected workers; and reducing disease-related stigma and discrimination.
Studies have not found a direct association between HIV infection and tourism, Bartlett said. However, the campaign is important “not merely because our economy relies so heavily on tourism earnings, but also because the Caribbean has the second highest HIV/AIDS prevalence in the world,” he said. “The tourism workforce is a key population which has to be protected against potential damaging effects of HIV.”
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!
Bartlett said these policies “should be practiced in the halls of tourism.” He lauded businesses that have already launched workplace HIV programs, as well as those that have installed on-site condom dispensing machines.
With the help of a $5.5 million (US $64,000) World Bank loan, the campaign will focus on HIV prevention in the workplace; management and mitigation of the disease’s impact in the workplace and tourism sector; provision of HIV/AIDS treatment, care, and support for affected workers; and reducing disease-related stigma and discrimination.
Studies have not found a direct association between HIV infection and tourism, Bartlett said. However, the campaign is important “not merely because our economy relies so heavily on tourism earnings, but also because the Caribbean has the second highest HIV/AIDS prevalence in the world,” he said. “The tourism workforce is a key population which has to be protected against potential damaging effects of HIV.”
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.
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Where Blood Can Determine Everything
Routine hepatitis B virus testing of potential employees and students in China remains widespread more than a year after the nation banned mandatory testing by businesses, governments, and schools, advocates say. Despite legal protections for people with HBV, numerous websites have sprung up offering “gunmen” for hire - people who are not infected who, for $125-$300, will take the blood test for HBV-infected applicants.
“Their business is really good right now,” said Yang Zhanqing, executive director of the Beijing Yirenping Center, an advocacy and legal services group that assists with discrimination claims.
An estimated one-third of people with chronic HBV worldwide live in China, about 10 percent of whose population is HBV-infected. Widespread HBV-related discrimination there is partly based on the mistaken belief that the virus is easily spread.
After disclosing her infection to a potential employer in 2005, Zhou Juejiang said she was told “they would discuss it with superiors and never responded.” “My only choice seemed to be to return to my village and do farming, which was the only job that didn’t require a medical checkup,” said Zhou, who believes hiring a stand-in for the test would be immoral.
Some of the nation’s top kindergartens keep out toddlers with HBV, Yang said. Even today, most companies still screen for HBV and reject those who test positive, advocates say.
“It affects everything,” said Yang. “If they want to go to a hospital for something, they can’t talk about it. If they want to get married, they can’t talk about it. They can’t tell their friends, or anyone else.”
“It used to be that every lawsuit we helped with was groundbreaking,” Yang said. “Now there are so many it’s becoming normal.”
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.
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“Their business is really good right now,” said Yang Zhanqing, executive director of the Beijing Yirenping Center, an advocacy and legal services group that assists with discrimination claims.
An estimated one-third of people with chronic HBV worldwide live in China, about 10 percent of whose population is HBV-infected. Widespread HBV-related discrimination there is partly based on the mistaken belief that the virus is easily spread.
After disclosing her infection to a potential employer in 2005, Zhou Juejiang said she was told “they would discuss it with superiors and never responded.” “My only choice seemed to be to return to my village and do farming, which was the only job that didn’t require a medical checkup,” said Zhou, who believes hiring a stand-in for the test would be immoral.
Some of the nation’s top kindergartens keep out toddlers with HBV, Yang said. Even today, most companies still screen for HBV and reject those who test positive, advocates say.
“It affects everything,” said Yang. “If they want to go to a hospital for something, they can’t talk about it. If they want to get married, they can’t talk about it. They can’t tell their friends, or anyone else.”
“It used to be that every lawsuit we helped with was groundbreaking,” Yang said. “Now there are so many it’s becoming normal.”
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.
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Privacy Disputes Threaten Mass. HIV Testing Bill
The Massachusetts Medical Society, a group representing state health care providers, is warning lawmakers and health officials that a proposed HIV testing bill’s language on consent and privacy could do more harm than good.
Massachusetts and Nebraska are the only states that have not fully adopted CDC’s 2006 guidelines for HIV testing, which specifically recommend against obtaining separate consent and suggest incorporating permission into a general consent that patients ages 13-64 would give for any type of diagnostic test. Current Massachusetts law states that no doctor or health care provider can test for HIV or release information about results without obtaining a patient’s written informed consent.
The proposed bill replaces written consent with “verbal informed consent,” which must be noted in a patient’s records. It also states that a patient’s HIV-related medical information cannot be shared without the patient’s written consent.
“A general medical consent form should suffice,” said Dr. Lynda Young, president of MMS. “Verbal consent that is specific for one kind of testing, no matter what that testing is ... doesn’t need to happen.” Adding the requirements only place more roadblocks in the way of routine HIV testing, she said.
“Right now we have systems in place that protect patients’ confidentiality,” said Dr. Stephen Boswell, president of Fenway Health, which provides health care to Boston’s LGBT community. “They are very significant and far-reaching rules that govern who we can talk to, how we can talk to them, when we need their permission, how we have to get permission.”
Boswell and Rebecca Haag of AIDS Action Committee (AAC) oppose the bill. However, “I think we all share the goal of expanded testing,” said Haag, who has proposed a compromise solution that lawmakers eliminate the disclosure and information-sharing provisions.
Young said MMS is open to discussions with AAC, but added that doctors remain strongly opposed to the bill and would prefer instead to have the current law repealed.
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.
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Massachusetts and Nebraska are the only states that have not fully adopted CDC’s 2006 guidelines for HIV testing, which specifically recommend against obtaining separate consent and suggest incorporating permission into a general consent that patients ages 13-64 would give for any type of diagnostic test. Current Massachusetts law states that no doctor or health care provider can test for HIV or release information about results without obtaining a patient’s written informed consent.
The proposed bill replaces written consent with “verbal informed consent,” which must be noted in a patient’s records. It also states that a patient’s HIV-related medical information cannot be shared without the patient’s written consent.
“A general medical consent form should suffice,” said Dr. Lynda Young, president of MMS. “Verbal consent that is specific for one kind of testing, no matter what that testing is ... doesn’t need to happen.” Adding the requirements only place more roadblocks in the way of routine HIV testing, she said.
“Right now we have systems in place that protect patients’ confidentiality,” said Dr. Stephen Boswell, president of Fenway Health, which provides health care to Boston’s LGBT community. “They are very significant and far-reaching rules that govern who we can talk to, how we can talk to them, when we need their permission, how we have to get permission.”
Boswell and Rebecca Haag of AIDS Action Committee (AAC) oppose the bill. However, “I think we all share the goal of expanded testing,” said Haag, who has proposed a compromise solution that lawmakers eliminate the disclosure and information-sharing provisions.
Young said MMS is open to discussions with AAC, but added that doctors remain strongly opposed to the bill and would prefer instead to have the current law repealed.
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.
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On HPV Issue, D.C., Virginia Lead Way
Despite their different political leanings, Virginia and the District of Columbia are in step concerning human papillomavirus vaccine: The neighboring states are the only locales in the nation to mandate HPV immunization for sixth-grade girls.
Supporters of the vaccine, which protects against the STD linked to most cases of cervical cancer, do not fit the traditional liberal-conservative stereotypes. There is the self-described social liberal Anneli Barnes of Alexandria, who “opted against the HPV vaccine” for her 13-year-old daughter. Barnes is concerned about the rare adverse events she has read about online. “When it’s your kid, even a small number, it strikes home a little bit,” she said.
Del. Christopher P. Stolle (R-Virginia Beach) is an obstetrician-gynecologist and social conservative who strongly supports the HPV mandate. “The number-one function of government is to protect its citizens. ... That absolutely falls within the role of a limited, conservative government,” he said.
The politics of HPV are “multidimensional,” said Lawrence Gostin, a global health law expert and director of Georgetown University’s law school. “The first dimension is sex and parental responsibility, which is a core conservative, religious view. The second dimension is the health and life of young girls, which really is a pro-life view. And the third dimension is the corporate intrusion, and on the corporate intrusion, the left is likely to be upset about it.”
The District and Virginia both have opt-out policies that allow parents to decline the vaccine for any reason.
There is broad agreement among medical professionals that the HPV vaccine is a safe way to protect females from cervical cancer, which kills 4,000 US women annually. Federal health officials say more than 35 million Americans have undergone HPV vaccination with no pattern of serious side effects.
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!
Supporters of the vaccine, which protects against the STD linked to most cases of cervical cancer, do not fit the traditional liberal-conservative stereotypes. There is the self-described social liberal Anneli Barnes of Alexandria, who “opted against the HPV vaccine” for her 13-year-old daughter. Barnes is concerned about the rare adverse events she has read about online. “When it’s your kid, even a small number, it strikes home a little bit,” she said.
Del. Christopher P. Stolle (R-Virginia Beach) is an obstetrician-gynecologist and social conservative who strongly supports the HPV mandate. “The number-one function of government is to protect its citizens. ... That absolutely falls within the role of a limited, conservative government,” he said.
The politics of HPV are “multidimensional,” said Lawrence Gostin, a global health law expert and director of Georgetown University’s law school. “The first dimension is sex and parental responsibility, which is a core conservative, religious view. The second dimension is the health and life of young girls, which really is a pro-life view. And the third dimension is the corporate intrusion, and on the corporate intrusion, the left is likely to be upset about it.”
The District and Virginia both have opt-out policies that allow parents to decline the vaccine for any reason.
There is broad agreement among medical professionals that the HPV vaccine is a safe way to protect females from cervical cancer, which kills 4,000 US women annually. Federal health officials say more than 35 million Americans have undergone HPV vaccination with no pattern of serious side effects.
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.
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Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Churches Will Help Promote an L.A. County Campaign Against Chlamydia and Gonorrhea
Pastors and “first ladies” from churches throughout South Los Angeles are supporting a new self-service STD testing and awareness outreach.
Under the campaign, kiosks and a mobile health van will boost young women’s access to free tests and information, while patient follow-up at clinics and prevention education at schools will expand. Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas and Department of Public Health Director Dr. Jonathan Fielding, who are leading the effort, announced details of the program to school officials, church leaders, public health experts, and media at a gathering at the new King Center for Public Health in Willowbrook.
“This is probably the first time you have pastors and first ladies coming forward to address an issue that heretofore has been considered taboo,” Ridley-Thomas said.
“Nobody wants to talk about” the problem of rising chlamydia and gonorrhea rates among young black women, said Debra Williams, whose husband is pastor at McCoy Memorial Baptist Church. “We need to change that.”
Los Angeles County reported 45,400 chlamydia cases and 10,400 gonorrhea cases last year, data show. In 2009, the county led the nation for chlamydia case numbers and was second for gonorrhea.
The 2nd Supervisorial District, which includes South Los Angeles and two dozen other communities, has a disproportionate number of residents with both diseases, according to the county Department of Public Health. In addition, rates are much higher for black females ages 15-24 than for any other population.
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.
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Under the campaign, kiosks and a mobile health van will boost young women’s access to free tests and information, while patient follow-up at clinics and prevention education at schools will expand. Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas and Department of Public Health Director Dr. Jonathan Fielding, who are leading the effort, announced details of the program to school officials, church leaders, public health experts, and media at a gathering at the new King Center for Public Health in Willowbrook.
“This is probably the first time you have pastors and first ladies coming forward to address an issue that heretofore has been considered taboo,” Ridley-Thomas said.
“Nobody wants to talk about” the problem of rising chlamydia and gonorrhea rates among young black women, said Debra Williams, whose husband is pastor at McCoy Memorial Baptist Church. “We need to change that.”
Los Angeles County reported 45,400 chlamydia cases and 10,400 gonorrhea cases last year, data show. In 2009, the county led the nation for chlamydia case numbers and was second for gonorrhea.
The 2nd Supervisorial District, which includes South Los Angeles and two dozen other communities, has a disproportionate number of residents with both diseases, according to the county Department of Public Health. In addition, rates are much higher for black females ages 15-24 than for any other population.
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.
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A Way to Check that Drugs Are Not Counterfeit
A group of start-up companies, including US-based Sproxil, is offering a new approach to tackling a global problem: counterfeit medications.
Counterfeiting drugs is a $200 billion industry. So prevalent is the problem that in some nations, up to half of all pharmaceuticals are fake or low-quality. More than a half-million patients die annually while taking bad drugs for malaria and TB.
The new anti-counterfeiting system uses two technologies that are widespread in the developing world: text messaging and scratch-off labels. The scratch-off label reveals a unique code; the consumer texts the code to a toll-free number; and a response, received in seconds, tells whether the drug is genuine.
Sproxil has produced millions of the labels for drugmakers in India and Africa. The company reports that sales of the verified drugs typically increase, even though only 10 percent of customers text the codes.
Inspectors in Nigeria say they have found fewer fake drugs in pharmacies since the system was introduced.
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.
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Counterfeiting drugs is a $200 billion industry. So prevalent is the problem that in some nations, up to half of all pharmaceuticals are fake or low-quality. More than a half-million patients die annually while taking bad drugs for malaria and TB.
The new anti-counterfeiting system uses two technologies that are widespread in the developing world: text messaging and scratch-off labels. The scratch-off label reveals a unique code; the consumer texts the code to a toll-free number; and a response, received in seconds, tells whether the drug is genuine.
Sproxil has produced millions of the labels for drugmakers in India and Africa. The company reports that sales of the verified drugs typically increase, even though only 10 percent of customers text the codes.
Inspectors in Nigeria say they have found fewer fake drugs in pharmacies since the system was introduced.
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.
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Rates of Gonorrhea, Chlamydia Surge
Chlamydia diagnoses last year in Australia grew by 17 percent over the 2009 figure, while gonorrhea diagnoses shot up by 25 percent, the Kirby Institute reported today. More testing does not account for all of the increases, said David Wilson, an associate professor at the University of New South Wales-based institute.
“What we are seeing right now is the rate of diagnosis is surpassing the rate of testing, so that indicates there’s an increase in overall infection levels,” Wilson said. “So there’s an epidemic.”
Wilson said men’s lack of condom use is fueling the rise in STDs. Young heterosexuals were the most likely to be infected with chlamydia, with 80 percent of last year’s patients ages 15-29. The rate among women almost quadrupled, and it more than tripled among men who have sex with men. MSM last year also had a sharp increase in rectal gonorrhea infections, resulting in the highest population rate of gonorrhea diagnosis across jurisdictions over the last decade.
HIV and viral hepatitis remained mostly stable. The 1,043 new HIV diagnoses in 2010 were in line with the 1,000 diagnoses typically seen in each of the last five years, the report noted. Diagnoses of infectious syphilis, largely among MSM, declined to 4.9 cases per 100,000 from 6.7 per 100,000 in 2007.
Widespread rapid HIV testing could help Australia meet its UN commitment of halving new HIV infections by 2015, said Rob Lake, executive director of the Australian Federation of AIDS Organizations.
It is time to “move beyond this plateau and decrease infection rates,” Lake said. “Overseas experience has shown that when rapid HIV testing is offered, testing rates increase, and many people who have never previously tested present for testing.”
To read the report, visit: http://www.med.unsw.edu.au/NCHECRweb.nsf/resources/2011/$file/KIRBY_ASR2011.pdf.
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!
“What we are seeing right now is the rate of diagnosis is surpassing the rate of testing, so that indicates there’s an increase in overall infection levels,” Wilson said. “So there’s an epidemic.”
Wilson said men’s lack of condom use is fueling the rise in STDs. Young heterosexuals were the most likely to be infected with chlamydia, with 80 percent of last year’s patients ages 15-29. The rate among women almost quadrupled, and it more than tripled among men who have sex with men. MSM last year also had a sharp increase in rectal gonorrhea infections, resulting in the highest population rate of gonorrhea diagnosis across jurisdictions over the last decade.
HIV and viral hepatitis remained mostly stable. The 1,043 new HIV diagnoses in 2010 were in line with the 1,000 diagnoses typically seen in each of the last five years, the report noted. Diagnoses of infectious syphilis, largely among MSM, declined to 4.9 cases per 100,000 from 6.7 per 100,000 in 2007.
Widespread rapid HIV testing could help Australia meet its UN commitment of halving new HIV infections by 2015, said Rob Lake, executive director of the Australian Federation of AIDS Organizations.
It is time to “move beyond this plateau and decrease infection rates,” Lake said. “Overseas experience has shown that when rapid HIV testing is offered, testing rates increase, and many people who have never previously tested present for testing.”
To read the report, visit: http://www.med.unsw.edu.au/NCHECRweb.nsf/resources/2011/$file/KIRBY_ASR2011.pdf.
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.
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Vancouver Hospitals to Start Voluntary Routine HIV Testing to Save Lives
Beginning in October, Vancouver hospitals will offer HIV testing to all patients who are getting bloodwork done, Vancouver Coastal Health (VCH) announced on Friday. The pilot project aims to diagnose and treat infected patients earlier in order to improve their health and, by cutting viral loads, to prevent onward HIV transmission.
Previous studies have found the “treatment as prevention” (TAP) model helped reduce new HIV infections in British Columbia by 60 percent since 1996. In all other provinces, rates were no better than unchanged.
“Mortality is down, HIV new cases are down, AIDS-related hospital admissions are down,” said Dr. Julio Montaner, director of the B.C. Center for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, which has led the TAP approach. The center and Providence Health Care are partnering with VCH in the Vancouver pilot.
St. Paul’s and Mount Saint Joseph hospitals will begin testing all consenting patients on Oct. 3; Vancouver General Hospital will begin in November; and University of British Columbia joins in 2012. The pilot ends in 2013; data from it will be used to determine whether to continue or expand the project, which has $48 million (US $47 million) in funding from the B.C. Ministry of Health.
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.
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Previous studies have found the “treatment as prevention” (TAP) model helped reduce new HIV infections in British Columbia by 60 percent since 1996. In all other provinces, rates were no better than unchanged.
“Mortality is down, HIV new cases are down, AIDS-related hospital admissions are down,” said Dr. Julio Montaner, director of the B.C. Center for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, which has led the TAP approach. The center and Providence Health Care are partnering with VCH in the Vancouver pilot.
St. Paul’s and Mount Saint Joseph hospitals will begin testing all consenting patients on Oct. 3; Vancouver General Hospital will begin in November; and University of British Columbia joins in 2012. The pilot ends in 2013; data from it will be used to determine whether to continue or expand the project, which has $48 million (US $47 million) in funding from the B.C. Ministry of Health.
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!
Aborigines Have Higher STD Rates
The rates of chlamydia and gonorrhea diagnoses among the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population last year were substantially higher than among Australia’s non-indigenous population, according to a Kirby Institute surveillance report released today.
The chlamydia infection rate for Aborigines was more than three times that of other Australians, the institute said. Among Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders living outside Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, the gonorrhea rate, 804 diagnoses per 100,000 people in 2010, was almost 27 times higher than the rate of 30 per 100,000 for the non-indigenous population. The rate of infectious syphilis was five times higher among Aborigines than among other Australians.
Aborigines, who account for 2.3 percent of Australia’s population, suffer numerous health disparities linked to poverty. The population is also far younger than the average age in Australia, said James Ward, an Aborigine who heads the institute’s indigenous health program. STD rates were worst among Aborigines ages 16-19 and in remote Outback communities. Many Aborigines also lack STD awareness, he said, as health workers might focus on other concerns seen as more urgent.
The HIV diagnosis rate among Aborigines, 4.2 per 100,000 population in 2006-10, was only slightly higher than the non-indigenous rate of 4.1 per 100,000.
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.
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The chlamydia infection rate for Aborigines was more than three times that of other Australians, the institute said. Among Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders living outside Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, the gonorrhea rate, 804 diagnoses per 100,000 people in 2010, was almost 27 times higher than the rate of 30 per 100,000 for the non-indigenous population. The rate of infectious syphilis was five times higher among Aborigines than among other Australians.
Aborigines, who account for 2.3 percent of Australia’s population, suffer numerous health disparities linked to poverty. The population is also far younger than the average age in Australia, said James Ward, an Aborigine who heads the institute’s indigenous health program. STD rates were worst among Aborigines ages 16-19 and in remote Outback communities. Many Aborigines also lack STD awareness, he said, as health workers might focus on other concerns seen as more urgent.
The HIV diagnosis rate among Aborigines, 4.2 per 100,000 population in 2006-10, was only slightly higher than the non-indigenous rate of 4.1 per 100,000.
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.
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Feds Release More than $1.8 Billion in Funds to Combat HIV
On Monday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced $1.89 billion in federal funding for HIV/AIDS services.
Approximately $813 million of $1.213 billion in Part B funding of the Ryan White Program is designated for state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, which provide life-saving medicines to low-income HIV patients. A supplement of $8.4 million will help 36 states and territories address specific needs, including projected ADAP shortfalls and core medical care.
In addition, $40 million in ADAP Emergency Relief Funding will go toward eliminating or reducing waiting lists, preventing the need for such lists, and/or supporting cost-containment strategies in 30 states. According to the ADAP Advocacy Association, 8,785 patients were on ADAP waiting lists in 10 states as of Sept. 22.
A total of $645 million in Part A Ryan White money will go to 52 cities to provide core medical and support services, including $49.6 million for the Minority AIDS Initiative to improve access to care in disproportionately affected communities.
For more information, visit http://www.hrsa.gov/about/news/pressreleases/110926hivaids.html.
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.
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Approximately $813 million of $1.213 billion in Part B funding of the Ryan White Program is designated for state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs, which provide life-saving medicines to low-income HIV patients. A supplement of $8.4 million will help 36 states and territories address specific needs, including projected ADAP shortfalls and core medical care.
In addition, $40 million in ADAP Emergency Relief Funding will go toward eliminating or reducing waiting lists, preventing the need for such lists, and/or supporting cost-containment strategies in 30 states. According to the ADAP Advocacy Association, 8,785 patients were on ADAP waiting lists in 10 states as of Sept. 22.
A total of $645 million in Part A Ryan White money will go to 52 cities to provide core medical and support services, including $49.6 million for the Minority AIDS Initiative to improve access to care in disproportionately affected communities.
For more information, visit http://www.hrsa.gov/about/news/pressreleases/110926hivaids.html.
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.
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Rosie on Responsibility: Actress Describes What Jolted Her into HIV/AIDS Activism
The public is invited to a free event, “An Evening of REAL Conversation with Rosie Perez,” sponsored by the Syracuse Model Neighborhood Facility/FACES (Fighting AIDS/HIV through Case Management, Education and Support), Sept. 29 at the Southwest Community Center.
Perez - an actress, an AIDS activist for some 25 years, and a member of the President’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS - was chosen because “We think Rosie can reach out to the community and bring the people in who will listen and want to learn how to become a person of change in their community,” said H. Bernard Alex, director of Health Services/FACES. “The evening is designed to create a dialogue within the community of color regarding personal responsibility for one’s sexual health.”
The event begins at 7 p.m. at 401 South Ave., Syracuse. For more information, telephone 315-671-5834.
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.
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Perez - an actress, an AIDS activist for some 25 years, and a member of the President’s Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS - was chosen because “We think Rosie can reach out to the community and bring the people in who will listen and want to learn how to become a person of change in their community,” said H. Bernard Alex, director of Health Services/FACES. “The evening is designed to create a dialogue within the community of color regarding personal responsibility for one’s sexual health.”
The event begins at 7 p.m. at 401 South Ave., Syracuse. For more information, telephone 315-671-5834.
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.
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National AIDS Strategy Meeting to Be Held in Alabama
The first in a series of regional meetings to discuss the National HIV/AIDS Strategy will be held Sept. 27 in Birmingham.
Among those scheduled to take part are Jeffrey Crowley, director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy; Michael Saag, director of the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s Center for AIDS Research; UAB President Carol Garrison; and physician Michael Mugavero.
“We are seeking to facilitate a dialogue with our partners across the country to learn from successes and to discuss potential solutions as states and communities implement the strategy,” Crowley said in a news release.
The meeting, which is free and open to the public, begins at 2 p.m. at the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center. To register, visit www.cmpinc.net/onap. For more on other ONAP regional meetings, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/09/13/latest-update-registering-nhas-implementation-dialogues.
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.
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Among those scheduled to take part are Jeffrey Crowley, director of the White House Office of National AIDS Policy; Michael Saag, director of the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s Center for AIDS Research; UAB President Carol Garrison; and physician Michael Mugavero.
“We are seeking to facilitate a dialogue with our partners across the country to learn from successes and to discuss potential solutions as states and communities implement the strategy,” Crowley said in a news release.
The meeting, which is free and open to the public, begins at 2 p.m. at the Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center. To register, visit www.cmpinc.net/onap. For more on other ONAP regional meetings, visit http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/09/13/latest-update-registering-nhas-implementation-dialogues.
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.
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A Workshop Says Sex Need Not Stop with Advancing Age
Around 100 counselors, therapists, social workers, and educators gathered Friday at Widener University in Chester for the first of what organizers hope will be an annual event focusing on sexuality and aging.
“If people can understand the changes they’ll go through, they’re much less likely to be upset by them, and they can maintain their intimacy as they age,” said Peggy Brick, a longtime sex educator and founder of the Sexuality and Aging Consortium at Widener.
The workshops covered topics ranging from changing body image and chronic illness to retirement-community living and LGBT concerns. Session leaders discussed ways to help clients navigate their way through changes in sexual health.
Psychologist Carol Cobb-Nettleton led a discussion on how chronic conditions, such as hypertension and arthritis, and the medicines used to treat them can impact sex drive. “I teach my clients about the sexual-arousal cycle: desire, arousal, plateau, orgasm, and resolution,” said the director of the Wayne Counseling and Family Services Center. “That way they can focus on what isn’t working and what’s in trouble.”
Betsy Crane, director of Widener’s graduate program in human sexuality, said the biggest obstacle to sexual fulfillment is often aging persons’ own attitudes. When people undergo physical changes, she said, they may try to convince themselves that sex and intimacy no longer matter.
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.
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“If people can understand the changes they’ll go through, they’re much less likely to be upset by them, and they can maintain their intimacy as they age,” said Peggy Brick, a longtime sex educator and founder of the Sexuality and Aging Consortium at Widener.
The workshops covered topics ranging from changing body image and chronic illness to retirement-community living and LGBT concerns. Session leaders discussed ways to help clients navigate their way through changes in sexual health.
Psychologist Carol Cobb-Nettleton led a discussion on how chronic conditions, such as hypertension and arthritis, and the medicines used to treat them can impact sex drive. “I teach my clients about the sexual-arousal cycle: desire, arousal, plateau, orgasm, and resolution,” said the director of the Wayne Counseling and Family Services Center. “That way they can focus on what isn’t working and what’s in trouble.”
Betsy Crane, director of Widener’s graduate program in human sexuality, said the biggest obstacle to sexual fulfillment is often aging persons’ own attitudes. When people undergo physical changes, she said, they may try to convince themselves that sex and intimacy no longer matter.
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.
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Central and East European Migrant Men Who Have Sex with Men: An Exploration of Sexual Risk in the UK
Ten central and east European (CEE) nations have joined the European Union since May 2004. “While HIV rates remain low among [MSM] in CEE countries, there is no research on the sexual behavior of CEE MSM in the UK,” the authors wrote.
The current project used two popular MSM websites to recruit CEE MSM in the UK (n=691) to complete an online questionnaire. Most of the men had arrived in the UK since May 2004. Nearly one-third (30.7 percent) reported a previous STD diagnosis, while 4.8 percent said they were HIV-positive. Most of the HIV-positive MSM were diagnosed in the UK. More than one-fifth (22.8 percent) reported unprotected anal intercourse with a casual partner of unknown or serodiscordant HIV status.
MSM who were residents of the UK for longer periods of time (>5 years vs. <1 year) reported more partners in the previous 5 years (67.2 percent reported more than 10 partners, vs. 50.4 percent of the newer residents, p<0.001). MSM in the UK for more than 5 years also were less likely to report that their most recent partner was from their country of origin (14.9 percent vs. 33.6 percent, p<0.001). Among migrant CEE MSM living in London, 15.4 percent had received payment for sex in the UK, and 41.5 percent had taken recreational drugs in the previous year.
“CEE MSM in the UK are at risk for the acquisition and transmission of STI and HIV through unprotected anal intercourse with nonconcordant casual partners,” the authors concluded. “Sexual mixing with men from other countries, commercial sex, and increased partner numbers may introduce additional risk. This has important implications for the cross-border transmission of infections between the UK and CEE countries.”
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.
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The current project used two popular MSM websites to recruit CEE MSM in the UK (n=691) to complete an online questionnaire. Most of the men had arrived in the UK since May 2004. Nearly one-third (30.7 percent) reported a previous STD diagnosis, while 4.8 percent said they were HIV-positive. Most of the HIV-positive MSM were diagnosed in the UK. More than one-fifth (22.8 percent) reported unprotected anal intercourse with a casual partner of unknown or serodiscordant HIV status.
MSM who were residents of the UK for longer periods of time (>5 years vs. <1 year) reported more partners in the previous 5 years (67.2 percent reported more than 10 partners, vs. 50.4 percent of the newer residents, p<0.001). MSM in the UK for more than 5 years also were less likely to report that their most recent partner was from their country of origin (14.9 percent vs. 33.6 percent, p<0.001). Among migrant CEE MSM living in London, 15.4 percent had received payment for sex in the UK, and 41.5 percent had taken recreational drugs in the previous year.
“CEE MSM in the UK are at risk for the acquisition and transmission of STI and HIV through unprotected anal intercourse with nonconcordant casual partners,” the authors concluded. “Sexual mixing with men from other countries, commercial sex, and increased partner numbers may introduce additional risk. This has important implications for the cross-border transmission of infections between the UK and CEE countries.”
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.
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Kashmir Gets a Grip on AIDS
Current HIV prevalence in the north Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir is less than predicted years ago by the National AIDS Control Organization. In 2002-03, NACO suggested about 40,000 people there would be infected with HIV in two years, and 20,000 people would die of AIDS by 2015.
A sentinel survey by Jammu and Kashmir AIDS Prevention and Control Society (JKAPCS) showed HIV prevalence has declined from 1.2 percent in 2009 to 0.03 percent last year. There are 2,787 people with HIV/AIDS in the state, including 800 women and 176 children.
“There have been fewer and fewer new cases,” said Dr. M. A. Wani, former JKAPCS director. “Owing to the social stigma, people are reluctant to discuss topics around HIV/AIDS or avail of testing and treatment service,” Wani explained.
The Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences in Srinagar was able to get an antiretroviral treatment center “with great difficulty because of the small number of patients,” Wani said. With one ART center each in Jammu and Kashmir, the state treats 683 patients, NACO said in June.
Residents ages 15-45 are most at risk of HIV in the state, said Dr. Latief Ahmad, JKAPCS deputy director. Most infections are sexually acquired, Latief said, with troops, truck drivers, migrant laborers, and regular travelers among the most at-risk populations.
“It has been noted that well-developed cities and towns fall prey more easily to HIV,” said Wani. “Since Kashmir is largely underdeveloped, we are on the safer side.”
JKAPCS has advised thousands of school teachers and more 1,000 religious leaders about HIV/AIDS.
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.
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A sentinel survey by Jammu and Kashmir AIDS Prevention and Control Society (JKAPCS) showed HIV prevalence has declined from 1.2 percent in 2009 to 0.03 percent last year. There are 2,787 people with HIV/AIDS in the state, including 800 women and 176 children.
“There have been fewer and fewer new cases,” said Dr. M. A. Wani, former JKAPCS director. “Owing to the social stigma, people are reluctant to discuss topics around HIV/AIDS or avail of testing and treatment service,” Wani explained.
The Sher-e-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences in Srinagar was able to get an antiretroviral treatment center “with great difficulty because of the small number of patients,” Wani said. With one ART center each in Jammu and Kashmir, the state treats 683 patients, NACO said in June.
Residents ages 15-45 are most at risk of HIV in the state, said Dr. Latief Ahmad, JKAPCS deputy director. Most infections are sexually acquired, Latief said, with troops, truck drivers, migrant laborers, and regular travelers among the most at-risk populations.
“It has been noted that well-developed cities and towns fall prey more easily to HIV,” said Wani. “Since Kashmir is largely underdeveloped, we are on the safer side.”
JKAPCS has advised thousands of school teachers and more 1,000 religious leaders about HIV/AIDS.
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.
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More Youngsters Having Unsafe Sex: Global Study
Since 2009, the numbers of youths reporting sex with a new partner without using contraception grew from 19 percent to 40 percent in France, from 38 percent to 53 percent in the United States, and from 36 percent to 43 percent in Great Britain, a new survey suggests. Undertaken on behalf of hormonal contraceptive maker Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, the survey of more than 6,000 people in 29 countries was released ahead of World Contraception Day, Sept. 26, and endorsed by 11 non-governmental reproductive health organizations.
Among the report’s findings:
*Just 55 percent of young people in Europe reported receiving school-based sex education, compared to 78 percent in Latin America, 76 percent in Asia Pacific, and 74 percent in the United States.
*Being too embarrassed to speak honestly with a health care professional was a major barrier to contraception, cited by 42 percent of youths lacking access in Asia Pacific, 38 percent in Europe, 27 percent in Latin America and 24 percent in United States.
*Bathing or showering after sex was cited as possibly contraceptive by more than a third of Egyptian respondents.
*More than a quarter of participants in Thailand and India believed sex during menstruation was effectively contraceptive.
For more information about the survey, “Clueless or Clued Up: Your Right to Be Informed About Contraception,” visit: http://www.your-life.com/en/home/media_center/wcd_annual_survey/media_report_2011/index.php.
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.
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Among the report’s findings:
*Just 55 percent of young people in Europe reported receiving school-based sex education, compared to 78 percent in Latin America, 76 percent in Asia Pacific, and 74 percent in the United States.
*Being too embarrassed to speak honestly with a health care professional was a major barrier to contraception, cited by 42 percent of youths lacking access in Asia Pacific, 38 percent in Europe, 27 percent in Latin America and 24 percent in United States.
*Bathing or showering after sex was cited as possibly contraceptive by more than a third of Egyptian respondents.
*More than a quarter of participants in Thailand and India believed sex during menstruation was effectively contraceptive.
For more information about the survey, “Clueless or Clued Up: Your Right to Be Informed About Contraception,” visit: http://www.your-life.com/en/home/media_center/wcd_annual_survey/media_report_2011/index.php.
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.
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Surgeons Object to New CDC Organ-Screening Guidelines
New draft guidelines for reducing the risk of HIV and hepatitis B and C virus (HBV, HCV) transmission through solid organ transplants are too restrictive, according to the head of the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. The CDC proposal issued Wednesday is open to public comment for 60 days, and ASTS plans to weigh in during the process, said Mitchell Henry, its president.
“We support guidelines which help to decrease disease transmission, but we want them to be evidence-based and balanced by the risks of dying without an organ transplant,” Henry said.
Using the more sensitive and expensive nucleic acid test — for HIV, HCV, and under certain circumstances HBV — would not always be feasible, such as when an organ is flown to a remote location where no labs are available, Henry added.
ASTS believes the expansion of donors considered risky includes too many population groups that might otherwise be good candidates, Henry said. Potential donors who have had sex with two or more partners in the last year “could cover three-quarters of college kids in America,” he noted.
While the guidelines are not enforceable, they often become mandatory standards of care, Henry said. ASTS plans to submit criticism that its concerns have not been taken into account, as well as suggestions about how to modify the guidelines.
The draft rules are meant to give potential organ recipients and their physicians as much information as possible about transmission risks so they can make informed decisions, said Dr. Matthew J. Kuehnert, director of CDC’s Office of Blood, Organ, and Other Tissue Safety.
“The guidelines may actually expand available organs by providing more confidence in the risk assessment of the donor, which will in turn improve the chances a patient and doctor will accept the organ,” said Kuehnert.
For more information about the proposal, visit: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;dct=FR%252BPR%252BN%252BO%252BSR;rpp=10;po=0;D=CDC-2011-0011.
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!
“We support guidelines which help to decrease disease transmission, but we want them to be evidence-based and balanced by the risks of dying without an organ transplant,” Henry said.
Using the more sensitive and expensive nucleic acid test — for HIV, HCV, and under certain circumstances HBV — would not always be feasible, such as when an organ is flown to a remote location where no labs are available, Henry added.
ASTS believes the expansion of donors considered risky includes too many population groups that might otherwise be good candidates, Henry said. Potential donors who have had sex with two or more partners in the last year “could cover three-quarters of college kids in America,” he noted.
While the guidelines are not enforceable, they often become mandatory standards of care, Henry said. ASTS plans to submit criticism that its concerns have not been taken into account, as well as suggestions about how to modify the guidelines.
The draft rules are meant to give potential organ recipients and their physicians as much information as possible about transmission risks so they can make informed decisions, said Dr. Matthew J. Kuehnert, director of CDC’s Office of Blood, Organ, and Other Tissue Safety.
“The guidelines may actually expand available organs by providing more confidence in the risk assessment of the donor, which will in turn improve the chances a patient and doctor will accept the organ,” said Kuehnert.
For more information about the proposal, visit: http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;dct=FR%252BPR%252BN%252BO%252BSR;rpp=10;po=0;D=CDC-2011-0011.
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.
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Brown to Decide State's HPV Vaccine Debate
A measure awaiting action by Gov. Jerry Brown would allow youths age 12 and older to receive STD prevention services without parental consent.
AB 499 is sponsored by Assembly member Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). While it does not make prevention services mandatory, the bill aims to boost minors’ access to services including vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) and hepatitis, and HIV post-exposure prophylaxis.
“What this adds is them being able to receive prevention ... which is obviously a very important part of health care,” said Dr. Dorothy Furgerson, chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood Mar Monte. “If you can prevent a cancer with a vaccine, shouldn’t you do that?”
AB 499 sets 12 as the minimum age for receiving preventive services without parental consent, aligning it with existing law on treatment and conforming to federal age guidelines for HPV vaccination. Some parents are not involved in making health care decisions for their children, supporters say, and increasing access to preventive services could help combat rising STD rates in young people.
But a coalition of vaccine opponents, family groups, and others says the bill takes away parents’ rights. Brown’s office has received so many calls about AB 499 that it has set up a voicemail box exclusively for the issue. The governor has not taken a position on the measure.
Anti-vaccine activist Dawn Winkler, executive director of Health Advocacy in the Public Interest, worries youths may feel pressured to get vaccinated without fully understanding the potential side effects. “It’s just a matter of how can a 12-year-old possibly assess risk-vs.-benefit information and make a medical decision for themselves without the knowledge or consent of their parent?” she asked.
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.
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AB 499 is sponsored by Assembly member Toni Atkins (D-San Diego). While it does not make prevention services mandatory, the bill aims to boost minors’ access to services including vaccination against human papillomavirus (HPV) and hepatitis, and HIV post-exposure prophylaxis.
“What this adds is them being able to receive prevention ... which is obviously a very important part of health care,” said Dr. Dorothy Furgerson, chief medical officer for Planned Parenthood Mar Monte. “If you can prevent a cancer with a vaccine, shouldn’t you do that?”
AB 499 sets 12 as the minimum age for receiving preventive services without parental consent, aligning it with existing law on treatment and conforming to federal age guidelines for HPV vaccination. Some parents are not involved in making health care decisions for their children, supporters say, and increasing access to preventive services could help combat rising STD rates in young people.
But a coalition of vaccine opponents, family groups, and others says the bill takes away parents’ rights. Brown’s office has received so many calls about AB 499 that it has set up a voicemail box exclusively for the issue. The governor has not taken a position on the measure.
Anti-vaccine activist Dawn Winkler, executive director of Health Advocacy in the Public Interest, worries youths may feel pressured to get vaccinated without fully understanding the potential side effects. “It’s just a matter of how can a 12-year-old possibly assess risk-vs.-benefit information and make a medical decision for themselves without the knowledge or consent of their parent?” she asked.
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.
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Findings from University of Cape Town Broaden Understanding of HIV/AIDS
Scientists discuss in "Time to initiation of antiretroviral therapy among patients with HIV-associated tuberculosis in Cape Town, South Africa" new findings in HIV/AIDS. "We studied the time interval between starting tuberculosis treatment and commencing antiretroviral treatment (ART) in HIV-infected patients (n=1433; median CD4 count 71 cells per microliter, interquartile range: 32-132) attending 3 South African township ART services between 2002 and 2008. The overall median delay was 2.66 months (interquartile range: 1.58-4.17)," scientists in Cape Town, South Africa report.
"In adjusted analyses, delays varied between treatment sites but were shorter for patients with lower CD4 counts and those treated in more recent calendar years. During the most recent period (2007-2008), 4.7%, 19.7%, and 51.1% of patients started ART within 2, 4, and 8 weeks of tuberculosis treatment, respectively," wrote S.D. Lawn and colleagues, University of Cape Town.
The researchers concluded: "Operational barriers must be tackled to permit further acceleration of ART initiation as recommended by."
Lawn and colleagues published their study in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (Time to initiation of antiretroviral therapy among patients with HIV-associated tuberculosis in Cape Town, South Africa. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 2011;57(2):136-40).
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.
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"In adjusted analyses, delays varied between treatment sites but were shorter for patients with lower CD4 counts and those treated in more recent calendar years. During the most recent period (2007-2008), 4.7%, 19.7%, and 51.1% of patients started ART within 2, 4, and 8 weeks of tuberculosis treatment, respectively," wrote S.D. Lawn and colleagues, University of Cape Town.
The researchers concluded: "Operational barriers must be tackled to permit further acceleration of ART initiation as recommended by."
Lawn and colleagues published their study in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (Time to initiation of antiretroviral therapy among patients with HIV-associated tuberculosis in Cape Town, South Africa. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 2011;57(2):136-40).
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.
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Saturday, September 24, 2011
West Village Now a Center for People Growing Older with HIV
Nearly 20 years after HIV diagnoses peaked in New York City, the West Village neighborhood is home to many people aging with the disease, according to the Visiting Nurse Service of New York (VNSNY). Of New Yorkers living with HIV, 75 percent are age 40 or older, the age group that also accounted for nearly 42 percent of new diagnoses in 2009, the city health department says.
“A significant number of people with HIV, because of antiretroviral drugs, are aging with the disease,” said Andresa Persons, VNSNY’s director of AIDS services. Founded in 1893, VNSNY was the city’s first care provider for people with HIV/AIDS, Persons said. Today the group treats 235 HIV/AIDS patients citywide, involving nurses, social workers, nutritionists, and home health aides.
Early during the epidemic, “People wanted to stay away from people with this illness because so much was unknown,” said Arthur Fitting, a nurse who has worked with HIV/AIDS patients in the neighborhood for more than 25 years.
Over the last 10 years, changes in the West Village and Greenwich Village have complicated patients’ care, Fitting said. “With the influx of higher-cost real estate, the elderly people in the Village have had to find other housing,” he said. The closing of St. Vincent’s hospital also affected seniors with HIV/AIDS, he said.
“Even a change in physicians, much less the disappearance of a whole facility, has a big impact on their care,” Fitting said. “It doesn’t take much to rock the boat for this population.”
A “community effort” of social organizations and churches was instrumental for patient support in the 1980s and '90s, Fitting said. “That community effort is not as visible today, but it still exists,” he said.
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.
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“A significant number of people with HIV, because of antiretroviral drugs, are aging with the disease,” said Andresa Persons, VNSNY’s director of AIDS services. Founded in 1893, VNSNY was the city’s first care provider for people with HIV/AIDS, Persons said. Today the group treats 235 HIV/AIDS patients citywide, involving nurses, social workers, nutritionists, and home health aides.
Early during the epidemic, “People wanted to stay away from people with this illness because so much was unknown,” said Arthur Fitting, a nurse who has worked with HIV/AIDS patients in the neighborhood for more than 25 years.
Over the last 10 years, changes in the West Village and Greenwich Village have complicated patients’ care, Fitting said. “With the influx of higher-cost real estate, the elderly people in the Village have had to find other housing,” he said. The closing of St. Vincent’s hospital also affected seniors with HIV/AIDS, he said.
“Even a change in physicians, much less the disappearance of a whole facility, has a big impact on their care,” Fitting said. “It doesn’t take much to rock the boat for this population.”
A “community effort” of social organizations and churches was instrumental for patient support in the 1980s and '90s, Fitting said. “That community effort is not as visible today, but it still exists,” he said.
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!
Circumcision Among MSM in London, United Kingdom: An Unlikely Strategy for HIV Prevention
Male circumcision is unlikely to be a workable HIV prevention strategy among London MSM, the current study suggests. The team undertook the research to explore attitudes about circumcision among MSM in London and to assess the feasibility of conducting research on circumcision and HIV prevention among these men.
In May and June 2008, a convenience sample of MSM visiting gyms in central London completed a confidential, self-administered questionnaire. The information collected included demographic characteristics, self-reported HIV status, sexual behavior, circumcision status, attitudes about circumcision, and willingness to take part in research on circumcision and HIV prevention.
Among the 653 participants, 29 percent reported they were circumcised. HIV prevalence among the MSM was 23.3 percent and did not differ significantly between circumcised (18.6 percent) and uncircumcised (25.2 percent) men (adjusted odds ratio=0.79; 95 percent confidence interval: 0.50-1.26). The proportion of participants reporting unprotected anal intercourse in the past three months was similar in the circumcised (38.8 percent) and uncircumcised (36.7 percent) groups (AOR=1.06; 95 percent CI: 0.72-1.55). The uncircumcised MSM were less likely to think there were benefits to being circumcised compared to the circumcised men (31.2 percent vs. 65.4 percent, P<0.001). Just 10.3 percent of the uncircumcised men indicated a willingness to take part in research on circumcision as a strategy to prevent HIV transmission.
“Most uncircumcised MSM in this London survey were unwilling to participate in research on circumcision and HIV prevention,” the authors concluded. “Only a minority of uncircumcised men thought that there were benefits of circumcision. It is unlikely that circumcision would be a feasible strategy for HIV prevention among MSM in London.”
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!
In May and June 2008, a convenience sample of MSM visiting gyms in central London completed a confidential, self-administered questionnaire. The information collected included demographic characteristics, self-reported HIV status, sexual behavior, circumcision status, attitudes about circumcision, and willingness to take part in research on circumcision and HIV prevention.
Among the 653 participants, 29 percent reported they were circumcised. HIV prevalence among the MSM was 23.3 percent and did not differ significantly between circumcised (18.6 percent) and uncircumcised (25.2 percent) men (adjusted odds ratio=0.79; 95 percent confidence interval: 0.50-1.26). The proportion of participants reporting unprotected anal intercourse in the past three months was similar in the circumcised (38.8 percent) and uncircumcised (36.7 percent) groups (AOR=1.06; 95 percent CI: 0.72-1.55). The uncircumcised MSM were less likely to think there were benefits to being circumcised compared to the circumcised men (31.2 percent vs. 65.4 percent, P<0.001). Just 10.3 percent of the uncircumcised men indicated a willingness to take part in research on circumcision as a strategy to prevent HIV transmission.
“Most uncircumcised MSM in this London survey were unwilling to participate in research on circumcision and HIV prevention,” the authors concluded. “Only a minority of uncircumcised men thought that there were benefits of circumcision. It is unlikely that circumcision would be a feasible strategy for HIV prevention among MSM in London.”
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!
South China Villagers Turn to Music to Prevent the Spread of AIDS
In the southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, health workers are turning to the area’s history of musical folklore to spread AIDS prevention messages.
“We asked eight local singers to write and record songs about the disease,” said Huang Zhanghui, who became head of Shantun village’s AIDS prevention office two months ago. The traditional art form helps make the messages easier to understand and accept, Huang said.
Guangxi is second only to Henan province in terms of its number of HIV infections, more than 76 percent of which are sexually transmitted, said Ge Xianmin, a Guangxi government AIDS prevention official.
In addition to folk songs, Huang’s office uses text messaging and public film screenings to build AIDS awareness.
“We have been making progress with our anti-AIDS campaign,” said Huang. “Nearly all of our villagers know how AIDS is transmitted and how to prevent it.”
“I used to blush at the simple mention of sexual topics,” said Lu Meirong, 33, who joined a local women’s AIDS group in June. Now she counsels family and relatives to avoid sex workers and use condoms, a view she urges other women in the village to adopt. “I tell them to remind their migrant relatives to be tested for HIV after returning home,” she said.
Peer education is critically needed in rural communities, said Wei Kaizhong, who leads the health bureau for Hechi, the administrative city of Bama County. In agreement, Ge said, “Rural residents are the weakest links in China’s AIDS prevention efforts. Campaigns conducted by local residents are the most economical and effective way to stop the spread of AIDS.”
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!
“We asked eight local singers to write and record songs about the disease,” said Huang Zhanghui, who became head of Shantun village’s AIDS prevention office two months ago. The traditional art form helps make the messages easier to understand and accept, Huang said.
Guangxi is second only to Henan province in terms of its number of HIV infections, more than 76 percent of which are sexually transmitted, said Ge Xianmin, a Guangxi government AIDS prevention official.
In addition to folk songs, Huang’s office uses text messaging and public film screenings to build AIDS awareness.
“We have been making progress with our anti-AIDS campaign,” said Huang. “Nearly all of our villagers know how AIDS is transmitted and how to prevent it.”
“I used to blush at the simple mention of sexual topics,” said Lu Meirong, 33, who joined a local women’s AIDS group in June. Now she counsels family and relatives to avoid sex workers and use condoms, a view she urges other women in the village to adopt. “I tell them to remind their migrant relatives to be tested for HIV after returning home,” she said.
Peer education is critically needed in rural communities, said Wei Kaizhong, who leads the health bureau for Hechi, the administrative city of Bama County. In agreement, Ge said, “Rural residents are the weakest links in China’s AIDS prevention efforts. Campaigns conducted by local residents are the most economical and effective way to stop the spread of AIDS.”
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!
More Texas Schools Teach Safe Sex with Abstinence
Most Texas school districts that teach sex education choose abstinence-only programs, according to a forthcoming Texas Freedom Network analysis of Texas Education Agency data. However, a growing number of schools are moving toward abstinence-plus curricula that include instruction about contraceptive methods, condoms, and safer sex.
In the conservative west Texas town of Midland, 172 pregnant girls attended district public schools last year. “These are girls as young as 13 that are pregnant, some of them are on their second pregnancies,” said Tracey Dees, the district’s health services supervisor, noting many students also report STDs. Eighteen months ago, the board chose to implement a new comprehensive curriculum for seventh and eighth grades.
In Harris County, nine districts have or are adopting an abstinence-plus program, said Susan Tortolero, director of University of Texas’ Prevention Research Center, who developed the Midland curriculum. “It’s like we’re beyond this argument of abstinence, abstinence-plus,” she said. “Districts want something that works.”
Districts in Austin, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, and Plano also have moved toward comprehensive sex education. Research shows that teaching teens about condoms and birth control delays, rather than encourages, sexual initiation, Tortolero said.
The Spring Branch Independent School District outside Houston began examining abstinence-plus programs about three years ago. After seeing a slight increase in pregnancies and reviewing behavioral trends, the district will implement the new curriculum next year, said Rebecca Fuchs, the district’s director of health and fitness.
Texas had the third-highest rate of births among teens ages 15-19 in the nation, according to 2008 data from the National Center for Health Statistics. Last year, the state health department decided not to apply for federal comprehensive sex education funding. Texas remains the largest recipient of federal abstinence-only grants.
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!
In the conservative west Texas town of Midland, 172 pregnant girls attended district public schools last year. “These are girls as young as 13 that are pregnant, some of them are on their second pregnancies,” said Tracey Dees, the district’s health services supervisor, noting many students also report STDs. Eighteen months ago, the board chose to implement a new comprehensive curriculum for seventh and eighth grades.
In Harris County, nine districts have or are adopting an abstinence-plus program, said Susan Tortolero, director of University of Texas’ Prevention Research Center, who developed the Midland curriculum. “It’s like we’re beyond this argument of abstinence, abstinence-plus,” she said. “Districts want something that works.”
Districts in Austin, Corpus Christi, San Antonio, and Plano also have moved toward comprehensive sex education. Research shows that teaching teens about condoms and birth control delays, rather than encourages, sexual initiation, Tortolero said.
The Spring Branch Independent School District outside Houston began examining abstinence-plus programs about three years ago. After seeing a slight increase in pregnancies and reviewing behavioral trends, the district will implement the new curriculum next year, said Rebecca Fuchs, the district’s director of health and fitness.
Texas had the third-highest rate of births among teens ages 15-19 in the nation, according to 2008 data from the National Center for Health Statistics. Last year, the state health department decided not to apply for federal comprehensive sex education funding. Texas remains the largest recipient of federal abstinence-only grants.
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!
Friday, September 23, 2011
National HIV/AIDS Strategy Meeting to be Held at UAB
The White House Office of National AIDS Policy is holding a series of National HIV/AIDS Strategy Implementation Dialogues across the country to examine critical issues and encourage action and collaboration at the state and local levels. The first meeting, focusing on incorporating prevention and care research into HIV programs, is being held at the University of Alabama at Birmingham on Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2011.
"This is the one event ONAP is holding that is focused on research and they chose UAB. It's not just about being picked; it's also a charge to us to deliver on a research agenda," says Michael Saag, M.D., UAB professor of medicine and director of the UAB Center for AIDS Research.
Saag, who holds the Jim Straley Endowed Chair in AIDS Research, has made seminal discoveries in the genetic evolution of the human immunodeficiency virus in vivo and also directed the first in-patient studies of seven of the 25 antiretroviral drugs developed to fight the virus.
"I hope this gives us a clear roadmap for what needs to be done next, not just here in Birmingham, but elsewhere on a national level to improve our ability to implement what the NHAS is about," adds Saag, who is the immediate past president of the HIV Medicine Association.
The NHAS has three main goals: reducing new HIV infections, increasing access to care and improving health outcomes for people living with HIV, and reducing HIV-related health disparities. The strategy sets a target of completing these goals by 2015
"I think the NHAS got it right, but now what? Strategies on paper don't mean anything, they only mean something if they make a difference, if they are implemented, and that is what is happening now," explains Saag.
In 1994, UAB first used a three-drug combination prescription that would become the highly active antiretroviral therapy that today is the standard of care for treating HIV patients. Now, UAB will be the first Implementation Dialogue site, with the goal of moving the NHAS forward.
The event is free, open to the public, and will take place from 2 to 4:30 p.m. in the Jemison Concert hall at UAB's Alys Robinson Stephens Performing Arts Center. It will be moderated by Saag and feature opening remarks by UAB President Carol Garrison and Jeffrey S. Crowley, director of the ONAP.
UAB researcher Michael J. Mugavero, M.D., associate professor in the UAB Division of Infectious Diseases, will give the keynote address. Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H., assistant secretary for health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will also attend. A panel discussion will take place, followed by an opportunity for the audience to ask questions.
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!
"This is the one event ONAP is holding that is focused on research and they chose UAB. It's not just about being picked; it's also a charge to us to deliver on a research agenda," says Michael Saag, M.D., UAB professor of medicine and director of the UAB Center for AIDS Research.
Saag, who holds the Jim Straley Endowed Chair in AIDS Research, has made seminal discoveries in the genetic evolution of the human immunodeficiency virus in vivo and also directed the first in-patient studies of seven of the 25 antiretroviral drugs developed to fight the virus.
"I hope this gives us a clear roadmap for what needs to be done next, not just here in Birmingham, but elsewhere on a national level to improve our ability to implement what the NHAS is about," adds Saag, who is the immediate past president of the HIV Medicine Association.
The NHAS has three main goals: reducing new HIV infections, increasing access to care and improving health outcomes for people living with HIV, and reducing HIV-related health disparities. The strategy sets a target of completing these goals by 2015
"I think the NHAS got it right, but now what? Strategies on paper don't mean anything, they only mean something if they make a difference, if they are implemented, and that is what is happening now," explains Saag.
In 1994, UAB first used a three-drug combination prescription that would become the highly active antiretroviral therapy that today is the standard of care for treating HIV patients. Now, UAB will be the first Implementation Dialogue site, with the goal of moving the NHAS forward.
The event is free, open to the public, and will take place from 2 to 4:30 p.m. in the Jemison Concert hall at UAB's Alys Robinson Stephens Performing Arts Center. It will be moderated by Saag and feature opening remarks by UAB President Carol Garrison and Jeffrey S. Crowley, director of the ONAP.
UAB researcher Michael J. Mugavero, M.D., associate professor in the UAB Division of Infectious Diseases, will give the keynote address. Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H., assistant secretary for health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will also attend. A panel discussion will take place, followed by an opportunity for the audience to ask questions.
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!
AHF Sues FDA Over Information on Gilead’s HIV Prevention Pill
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) today filed a lawsuit against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) over its denial of AHF’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests regarding correspondence between the FDA and Gilead Sciences regarding its potential application to the FDA to expand the use of its AIDS drug, Truvada, for use as an HIV prevention pill for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in uninfected individuals.
The legal action was filed in the United States District Court, Central District of California. According to AHF’s suit, the action is being, “…brought under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. Section 552, as amended, to enjoin defendants from withholding from public disclosure certain records of the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”),” and seeks, “To enjoin the FDA from withholding FDA records,” and “To order the production of any FDA records improperly withheld from AHF.”
“AHF heard from reliable sources that FDA officials were actually encouraging Gilead to apply for expanded use of its AIDS drug, Truvada, as a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis for prevention of HIV transmission,” said Michael Weinstein, AIDS Healthcare Foundation President. “We were aggravated by the fact that the FDA has failed to comply with these FOIA requests and filed this legal action after repeated failed attempts to get any answers from the FDA. This action was also filed to determine the extent of collusion, if any, between Gilead and the FDA with regard to this potential use for Truvada.”
Gilead’s likely pursuit of FDA-approval for expanding the use of its best-selling $35 per day AIDS drug to include use as a form of HIV prevention comes following a widely-reported study released earlier this year of 2,500 high risk gay men using Truvada as prevention which showed a 44% effectiveness rate in preventing HIV transmission.
AHF believes such modest results are insufficient to support FDA approval of Truvada as an HIV prevention tool—and a move that AHF and other AIDS advocates believe would set a dangerous precedent.
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!
The legal action was filed in the United States District Court, Central District of California. According to AHF’s suit, the action is being, “…brought under the Freedom of Information Act, 5 U.S.C. Section 552, as amended, to enjoin defendants from withholding from public disclosure certain records of the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”),” and seeks, “To enjoin the FDA from withholding FDA records,” and “To order the production of any FDA records improperly withheld from AHF.”
“AHF heard from reliable sources that FDA officials were actually encouraging Gilead to apply for expanded use of its AIDS drug, Truvada, as a form of pre-exposure prophylaxis for prevention of HIV transmission,” said Michael Weinstein, AIDS Healthcare Foundation President. “We were aggravated by the fact that the FDA has failed to comply with these FOIA requests and filed this legal action after repeated failed attempts to get any answers from the FDA. This action was also filed to determine the extent of collusion, if any, between Gilead and the FDA with regard to this potential use for Truvada.”
Gilead’s likely pursuit of FDA-approval for expanding the use of its best-selling $35 per day AIDS drug to include use as a form of HIV prevention comes following a widely-reported study released earlier this year of 2,500 high risk gay men using Truvada as prevention which showed a 44% effectiveness rate in preventing HIV transmission.
AHF believes such modest results are insufficient to support FDA approval of Truvada as an HIV prevention tool—and a move that AHF and other AIDS advocates believe would set a dangerous precedent.
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!
Chinese Condoms Too Small for South Africans
A South African court has blocked the government from buying 11 million Chinese condoms, saying they are too small, a newspaper reported Friday.
The finance ministry had awarded a contract to a firm called Siqamba Medical, which planned to buy the Phoenurse condoms from China, the Beeld newspaper said.
A rival firm, Sekunjalo Investments Corporation, turned to the High Court in Pretoria after losing the bid, arguing that their condoms were 20 percent larger than the Chinese ones.
Judge Sulet Potterill blocked the deal with Siqamba, ruling that the condoms were too small, made from the wrong material, and were not approved by the World Health Organisation, the paper said.
South Africa has more HIV infections than any country in the world, with 5.38 million of its 50 million people carrying the virus.
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!
The finance ministry had awarded a contract to a firm called Siqamba Medical, which planned to buy the Phoenurse condoms from China, the Beeld newspaper said.
A rival firm, Sekunjalo Investments Corporation, turned to the High Court in Pretoria after losing the bid, arguing that their condoms were 20 percent larger than the Chinese ones.
Judge Sulet Potterill blocked the deal with Siqamba, ruling that the condoms were too small, made from the wrong material, and were not approved by the World Health Organisation, the paper said.
South Africa has more HIV infections than any country in the world, with 5.38 million of its 50 million people carrying the virus.
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!
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