AIDS Treatment News

Topical Treatment Works Well for Anal Lesions

2009-11-10T23:42:00.000-05:00

"Trichloroacetic acid (TCA), a topical liquid sometimes used to treat genital warts, may also be useful as a therapy for anal intraepithelial neoplasia (AIN) in HIV-positive and HIV-negative people, according to a study published in the December issue of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.

"Anal lesions from human papillomavirus (HPV) infection are a precursor to anal cancer. They are remarkably common in men who have sex with men (MSM), especially HIV-positive MSM. This is of particular concern, as anal cancer rates among HIV-positive people are on the rise."

Read more in POZ, November 10, 2009.

Global cost of HIV treatment and prevention could reach $35 billion by 2031

2009-11-10T23:38:00.000-05:00

"Without a serious change in approach AIDS will still be a major pandemic and funding required in resource-poor countries could reach an estimated $35 billion annually, three times the current level, by 2031—the fiftieth year of the pandemic— according to modelling carried out for the AIDS 2031 project by Robert Hecht and colleagues and published in the November/December edition of Health Affairs.

"Results from the Cost and Financing Working Group, AIDS 2031, headed by Robert Hecht were presented at a Health Affairs briefing on Capitol Hill ‘Meeting HIV/AIDS cost demands: is the global response working?’ in Washington, DC on November 10 2009. Others presenting at the briefing included: Anthony S. Fauci, Tom Walsh, Daniel Wikler, Alan E. Greenberg and Shannon L. Hader.

"Results support policy choices focusing on investments in high-impact prevention for most-at-risk groups—sex workers, men who have sex with men, and injecting drug users—, efficient treatments, new prevention tools together with significant behaviour-change efforts. These could help cut costs by half as well as help control the pandemic."

Read more in Aidsmap, November 10, 2009.

Highlights from the 2009 U.S. Conference on AIDS

2009-11-08T22:31:00.000-05:00

"And this year there was a new emerging theme - that of new media’s role in the response to HIV. Case in point - at last year’s USCA in Florida, we had seven people attend our new media workshops. This year we had over 150 participants!"

Read more in AIDS.gov Blog, November 3, 2009.

Methamphetamine Treatment Increases in Vitro and in Vivo HIV Replication

2009-11-08T22:27:00.000-05:00

"Our results provide further insights into the mechanisms by which methamphetamine accelerates disease course in HIV-infected individuals."

Read more in Methamphetamine Treatment Increases in Vitro and in Vivo HIV Replication, November 7, 2009.

Note: "Crystal" caused faster HIV replication in laboratory cells, and also in genetically engineered mice.

Sulfur Metabolism in AIDS: Cystamine as an Anti-HIV Agent

2009-11-08T22:14:00.000-05:00

"Numerous reports have documented disturbances of sulfur metabolism in AIDS patients. There is a generalized loss of sulfur from the body, measured as cysteine and glutathione. ... A clinical trial of cystamine in AIDS is indicated."

Read more in AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, November 3, 2009.

DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS WARNS OF LOOMING HIV FUNDING CRISIS

2009-11-05T23:47:00.000-05:00

"A retreat from international funding commitments for AIDS threatens to undermine the dramatic gains made in reducing AIDS-related illness and death in recent years, according to a new report released today by the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

"International support to combat HIV/AIDS is faltering, as reflected in significant shortfalls among two of the world’s main funding mechanisms for HIV/AIDS. The board of directors of the Global Fund, a key financer of AIDS programs in poor countries, is unable to respond to countries’ needs. The board will vote next week in Addis Ababa whether or not to suspend all new funding proposals in 2010. The US President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR) , the American government’s AIDS program, is capping funding for two more years. This means that new patients will be turned away for treatment.

Report: Punishing Success: Early Signs of a Retreat from Commitment to HIV Care and Treatment."

Read more in Doctors Without Borders press release, November 5, 2009.

Therapeutic Vaccines: Steady Wins the Race

2009-11-05T23:36:00.000-05:00

"Also of interest are personally tailored vaccine strategies, such as the one that made a splash earlier this month at AIDS Vaccine 2009, the annual meeting of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, in Paris. AGS-004, being developed by North Carolina–based Argos, customizes immune system cells from each individual, using HIV fragments known as messenger RNA, to maximize an HIV-positive person’s immune response to the virus. To do this, dendritic cells are removed from the body and combined with mRNA taken from the same individual’s HIV. The data presented at the Paris conference showed that the vaccine, when given just before an ARV treatment interruption, kept viral loads at least 1 log—more than an 80 percent reduction—below pre-ARV therapy levels in 13 of 16 patients."

Read more in POZ, November 3, 2009.

NIAID Director Fauci Discusses Compelling Scientific Challenges in HIV/AIDS Research

2009-11-05T23:31:00.000-05:00

"Even if access to scientifically proven HIV services were greatly improved by increased funding or improved efficiencies, slowing and ultimately ending the HIV/AIDS pandemic also will likely require major advances in two areas. First, curing a sizable proportion of those already infected with the virus such that lifelong therapy is not required; and, second, developing more powerful prevention tools to slow the rate of new infections. The authors assert that the scientific challenges related to these two goals are the most important issues in HIV/AIDS research today."

Read more in NIH News, November 3, 2009.

Reassurance for HIV-positive women about short-term risk of bone loss

2009-11-05T23:26:00.000-05:00

"Short-term rates of bone loss are similar in younger HIV-positive and HIV-negative women, US investigators report in a study published in the online edition of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.

"Although HIV-positive women had lower bone mineral density in the lower spine and neck on entry to the study, they had similar rates of bone loss during follow-up. Moreover, HIV treatment was not a risk factor for bone loss.

"'Our results provide some reassurance that short-term bone loss is modest in the majority of premenopausal, weight stable HIV+ women', write the investigators."

Read more in Aidsmap, November 5, 2009.

GSK and Pfizer launch joint HIV venture, ViiV Healthcare

2009-11-05T23:22:00.000-05:00

"The company says that their research will not solely focus on creating new molecules, but will try to develop new formulations that are easier to adhere to, including paediatric fixed-dose combinations.

"Dominique Limet, the new chief executive, told Reuters that 'Our intent is to look at what we can do with the portfolio we get from Pfizer and Glaxo to build new combinations which will completely transform the way we treat HIV.'

"The company also states that it is committed to broadening access to medicines around the world and maintaining GSK’s Positive Action programme, which supports community projects."

Read more in Aidsmap, November 3, 2009.

New hepatitis C protease inhibitors achieve 80% ‘cure’ rate in patients with genotype 1 infection

2009-11-05T23:17:00.000-05:00

"A course of hepatitis C (HCV) combination therapy including the experimental HCV protease inhibitor telaprevir (VX-950) has produced a sustained viral response (SVR) in over 80% of treatment-naïve, hepatitis C-mono-infected patients with HCV genotype 1.

"Another study found similar rates achieved by another protease inhibitor, boceprevir. The findings were annouced on Tuesday at the American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD) meeting in Boston, USA."

Read more in Aidsmap, November 3, 2009.

Zuma Rallies S. Africa to Fight AIDS

2009-11-01T11:33:00.000-05:00

"In a culmination of his party’s major shift on AIDS, a disease that has led to plunging life expectancies here, President Jacob Zuma last week definitively rejected his predecessor’s denial of the viral cause of AIDS and of the critical role of antiretroviral drugs in treating it.

"Almost 10 years to the day after President Thabo Mbeki first suggested that AIDS drugs could pose “a danger to health” in an Oct. 28, 1999, speech in Parliament, Mr. Zuma declared Thursday in the same chamber, 'Knowledge will help us to confront denialism and the stigma attached to the disease.'

"In a country that now has more H.I.V.-infected people and annual AIDS deaths than any other, Mr. Zuma’s clarion call for a battle against the disease, six months into his term as president, led to rejoicing among advocates who had long sought such national leadership."

Read more in New York Times, October 31, 2009.

White House announces end to HIV travel ban

2009-10-30T23:17:00.000-04:00

"President Obama called the 22-year ban on travel and immigration by HIV-positive individuals a decision "rooted in fear rather than fact" and announced the end of the rule-making process lifting the ban.

"The president signed the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Treatment Extension Act of 2009 at the White House Friday and also spoke of the new rules, which have been under development more more than a year. "We are finishing the job," the president said.

"The regulations are the final procedural step in ending the ban, and will be published Monday in the Federal Register, to be followed by the standard 60-day waiting period prior to implementation."

Read more in Washington Post blog, October 30, 2009.

HIV tamed by designer 'leash'

2009-10-30T13:03:00.000-04:00

"Researchers have shown how an antiviral protein produced by the immune system, dubbed tetherin, tames HIV and other viruses by literally putting them on a leash, to prevent their escape from infected cells. The insights reported in the October 30th issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, allowed the research team to design a completely artificial protein -- one that did not resemble native tetherin in its sequence at all -- that could nonetheless put a similar stop to the virus.

"Tetherin is essentially a rod with anchors at either end that are critical for its function," says Paul Bieniasz of Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center at The Rockefeller University. Either one of those anchors gets incorporated into the envelope surrounding HIV or other viruses as they bud through the plasma membrane of an infected cell. "One anchor gets into the virus and the other in the cell membrane to inevitably form a tether.

"We showed we could design a completely different protein with the same configuration – a rod with lipid anchors at either end – and it worked very well," he continued. The finding helped to confirm that tetherin is capable of acting all on its own, he added.

"They also explain tetherin's broad specificity to protect against many viruses. "It is just targeting lipids," Bieniasz said. "It's not about viral proteins." That's conceptually important, he continued, because there is no specific interaction between tetherin and any viral protein, which makes it a more difficult problem for viruses to evolve resistance. Rather than tweaking an existing protein-coding gene, "the virus has to make the more difficult adjustment of acquiring a new gene antagonist [of tetherin]."

"Unfortunately, many viruses have managed to do just that. In the case of HIV, a protein called Vpu counteracts tetherin. They now show it does so by sequestering the host protein, which prevents its incorporation into the virus. The new insight into tetherin's and Vpu's modes of action, however, may lead to the development of Vpu blockers that could free up the innate host defense and inhibit HIV's spread, Bieniasz suggests."

Read more in EurekAlert!, October 29, 2009.

Beyond Thailand: Making Sense of a Qualified AIDS Vaccine "Success"

2009-10-30T12:58:00.000-04:00

By Jon Cohen: "When researchers announced on 24 September that an AIDS vaccine trial had positive results for the first time in history, many wondered whether they were real. Some prominent skeptics remain, but that debate has largely given way to intense discussions about how to build on this surprising finding. Already, researchers have begun discussing the staggering challenge of probing blood samples from the more than 16,000 people in Thailand who participated in the trial to figure out which immune responses led to the modest protection reported. The key question is whether the study will help reveal the long-sought immune responses that correlate with protection."

Subscribers only read more in Science, October 30, 2009.

S.F. AIDS meeting has real-world focus

2009-10-30T12:50:00.000-04:00

"More than 3,000 public policy experts, health educators, patients and their advocates are expected to attend this week's U.S. Conference on AIDS in San Francisco. ...

"A lot of AIDS and HIV conferences are about the data and the numbers and the research, or they're for the doctors. This is really geared toward the grassroots people," said Jason Riggs, a spokesman for the Stop AIDS Project in San Francisco. "It's about providing training and networking, so people can advocate in their own communities for the things that people affected by HIV really need."

Read more in San Francisco Chronicle, October 29, 2009.

High prevalence of anal chlamydia in Swiss HIV-positive gay men

2009-10-30T12:27:00.000-04:00

"A large proportion of HIV-positive gay men in Switzerland have anorectal infection with chlamydia, investigators report in the November 15th edition of Clinical Infectious Diseases. The researchers suggest that undiagnosed anal chlamydia infections could be contributing to the continued spread of HIV amongst gay men in Switzerland."

Read more in Aidsmap, October 29, 2009.

Darunavir/ritonavir, etravirine and raltegravir has 'remarkable' success in children with resistant virus

2009-10-30T05:05:00.000-04:00

"A combination of darunavir/ritonavir, etravirine, and raltegravir is “remarkably” effective in HIV-positive adolescents with extensive prior experience of antiretroviral therapy, French investigators report in the November 13th edition of AIDS. The study involved twelve adolescents, and all but one had a viral load below 400 copies/ml after a year of treatment with this combination. Impressive improvements in CD4 cell counts were observed and there were no serious side-effects.

"'This [study] demonstrates that, as in adults, the majority of extensively treated adolescents can be virologically controlled with by a salvage regimen consisting of a combination of new drugs, despite a long record of suboptimal treatment and viral multiresistance', write the investigators."

Read more in Aidsmap, October 30, 2009.

Scientists Discover Gene that 'Cancer-Proofs' Rodent's Cells

2009-10-29T14:31:00.000-04:00

"Despite a 30-year lifespan that gives ample time for cells to grow cancerous, a small rodent species called a naked mole rat has never been found with tumors of any kind—and now biologists at the University of Rochester think they know why.

"The findings, presented in today's issue of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences [October 27], show that the mole rat's cells express a gene called p16 that makes the cells "claustrophobic," stopping the cells' proliferation when too many of them crowd together, cutting off runaway growth before it can start. The effect of p16 is so pronounced that when researchers mutated the cells to induce a tumor, the cells' growth barely changed, whereas regular mouse cells became fully cancerous."

Read more in University of Rochester press release, October 27, 2009.

Hepatitis C coinfection doesn't increase risk of progression to AIDS

2009-10-29T00:18:00.000-04:00

"A meta-analysis of over 30 studies involving in excess of 100,000 patients with HIV has shown that hepatitis C co-infection does not increase the risk of progression to AIDS. The study is published in the November 15th edition of Clinical Infectious Diseases, and is now available online.

"However, the researchers did find that in the period since effective anti-HIV treatment became available, co-infected patients still have a 35% higher risk of death compared to patients who only have HIV. The investigators believe that that 'the major contributor to mortality among coinfected subjects during the HAART [highly active antiretroviral therapy] era is likely to be liver disease.'

"Antiretroviral therapy means that many people with HIV can look forward to a long and healthy life. However, the predicted prognosis of individuals co-infected with HIV and hepatitis C is significantly shorter than that of patients who are infected with HIV alone."

Read more in Aidsmap, October 27, 2009.

Fighting H.I.V., a Community at a Time

2009-10-27T02:11:00.000-04:00

"Federal health officials are preparing a plan to study a bold new strategy to stop the spread of the AIDS virus: routinely testing virtually every adult in a community, and promptly treating those found to be infected."

Read more in New York Times, October 26, 2009.

TRIPS+ negotiations - death sentence for thousands Ukrainians - please support our protest!!!!

2009-10-23T20:35:00.002-04:00

"Dear friends,

"I would like to turn for your support in our advocacy effort to prevent harmful effect of TRIPS+ that Ukraine is currently pushed to accept in EFTA negotiations. We received this information from the reliable source right on the day of the negotiations as the process itself is extremely closed and healthcare sector is not involved into this process. The TRIPS+ provisions are extremely strict and carry real risk of interruption of treatment for more than 10 000 patients with HIV that are on HAART in Ukraine now, but present overall danger for the whole healthcare sector of Ukraine and particularly to the area of access to essential medicines.

"Ukraine is pushed to accept:

"Patent term extensions for medicines for 5 years: the condition which is not taken even in western countries (like US)

"Data exclusivity for 8 years for medicines

"Patent for the new use of old medicines

"These are some of the most outrageous demands that Ukraine has faced with. Accepting such conditions will mean blockage of use of generic medications that currently are the key part of the 1st and 2nd line treatment schemes of HAART in Ukraine which will lead to potential treatment interruption for thousands of people. In nearest future, Ukraine is signing upon death penalty for thousands of people who will require innovative treatment regimen, who are suffering from co-infection of HIV/Hepatitis C and finally for people with MDR-TB which is becoming a first cause of mortality in Ukrainians living with HIV.

"We call upon you to send your letters of protest against accepting these draconian regulations by Ukraine to the current officials and addresses:

Ministry of economy of Ukraine
Ukraine, Kyiv, Grushevskogo Str. 12/2
Mr Danilishin Bogdan Michailovich
Fax: ph. (+38044) 272-5507, fax (+38044) 272-5546
Email: a_hryshko@hotmail.com

Ministry of Health of Ukraine
Ukraine, Kyiv, Grushevskogo 37
Mr Knyazevich Vasil Michailovich
Tel/Fax +38044 253 24 72

"If you have any questions – please write to me directly

Konstantin Lezhentsev
All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH
87 "В", Mezhyhirska St.,
Kyiv, Ukraine 04071
Tel.: +38 (044) 467 7567; 467 7569; 467 7584; ext. tel. 746
Fax: +38 (044) 467 7566"

Comment, by JSJ: The bullying of smaller countries continues -- to make them sacrifice lives of their people for the benefit of foreign profiteers.

Apparently Obama cannot help because he needs the pharmaceutical industry to help get U.S. healthcare passed.

Co-Payment Assistance for Wasting Drug Serostim

2009-10-23T20:16:00.000-04:00

"People with private health insurance using Serostim (recombinant human growth hormone) can now save up to $200 per month on their monthly co-payments, according to information released by the drug’s maker, EMD Serono. The co-payment card, available through health care providers prescribing Serostim, can be used up to six times during a one-year period."

Read more in POZ, October 21, 2009.

Wingnuts Target Jennings & Harvard's ACT UP Exhibit

2009-10-23T20:09:00.000-04:00

"They're running out of ammo. The right-wing nuts that have been trying, and miserably failing, to bring down Kevin Jennings, Obama's "safe schools czar," are now trying to use ACT UP as a smear (see WorldNetDaily). It seems Kevin was one of many supporters for a currently running exhibit at Harvard titled ACT UP New York: Activism, Art, and the AIDS Crisis, 1987-1993, which the wingnuts are calling "radical porn" (click on the exhibit poster for a closer look). Even worse, he may have even been a member of ACT UP way back when. The horror!"

Read more in Peter's POZ Blog, October 22, 2009.

Syringe programs return $4 for every $1 invested

2009-10-21T13:30:00.003-04:00

"Distributing syringes to drug injectors had prevented at least 32,000 HIV infections and 100,000 hepatitis C infections across Australia in the past 10 years, new research has found.

"Harm reduction campaigner, Mr John Ryan, said the national Return on Investment 2 study showed that needle and syringe programs (NSP) had saved Australia $1.28 billion in health costs in the past decade years.

"The study was funded by the Federal Government’s Department of Health and Ageing. It was conducted by the National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research. The study will be launched on Thursday October 22 in Sydney.

"'Nationally, more than 32,000 HIV and almost 100,000 hepatitis C infections have been prevented by providing sterile syringes and counselling to injectors in the past nine years,' said Mr Ryan who is Chief Executive Officer of the Association for Prevention and Harm Reduction Programs Australia (Anex).

"Australia has one of the most extensive NSP networks in the world. It has one of the lowest HIV rates among injectors globally.

"'Only 0.1% of drug injectors are HIV positive, but 14% would be if there were not needle and syringe programs throughout thousands of places in Australia,' Mr Ryan said.

"Heroin remains the most commonly injected illicit drug in Australia, followed by amphetamines. The lower the HIV rate among injectors, the safer the general community was, Mr Ryan said.

"'This proves yet again that syringe programs protect the community and are excellent value for money. Total government funding for NSP nationally was only $27 million a year on average. But, that has saved taxpayers more than $1.3 billion since 2000,” said Mr Ryan. Distributing syringes to drug injectors had prevented at least 32,000 HIV infections and 100,000 hepatitis C infections across Australia in the past 10 years, new research has found.

"Harm reduction campaigner, Mr John Ryan, said the national Return on Investment 2 study showed that needle and syringe programs (NSP) had saved Australia $1.28 billion in health costs in the past decade years.

"The study was funded by Federal Government’s Department of Health and Ageing. It was conducted by the National Centre in HIV Epidemiology and Clinical Research. The study will be launched on Thursday October 22 in Sydney. ...

"The full report is called Return on Investment 2: evaluating the cost effectiveness of needle and syringe programs in Australia. It can be downloaded at www.anex.org.au"

Read more in Return on Investment 2 [large download], October 21, 2009.