Drugs called antiretrovirals are a virtual “cure” for HIV / AIDS – turning the once terminal illness into a chronic health matter.
There are peoole in their 80s with HIV livng perfectly normal lives today.
These people, like others, will die of heart disease, strokes or cancer.
Sadly, many, including health professionals are ignorant of the vast progress made in this area.
HISTORY
A look at where we are 40 years into the HIV epidemic.
May 17, 2021By Liz Highleyman POZ
1981: The first medical report of AIDS is published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
1983: French researchers discover the retrovirus that causes AIDS.
1985: The first HIV antibody test is approved.
1987: The FDA approves the first antiretroviral drug, AZT (Retrovir).
1992: The FDA implements an accelerated approval process for experimental drugs.
1994: The ACTG 076 study shows that AZT prevents mother-to-child HIV transmission.
1995: The FDA approves the first protease inhibitor, Invirase (saquinavir).
1996: The first HIV viral load test is approved.
1996: The FDA approves the first NNRTI, Viramune (nelfinavir).
1997: The FDA approves Combivir (AZT plus lamivudine), the first coformulation of two HIV drugs.
1998: The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) issues its first antiretroviral treatment guidelines.
2001: The FDA approves tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF), the first nucleotide reverse transcriptase inhibitor.
2002: The Global Fund is launched to provide HIV treatment to low-income countries.
2003: The United States launches the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPAR) to fight HIV in low-income countries.
2006:The FDA approves Atripla, the first single-tablet regimen.
2006: The SMART study shows that treatment interruptions lead to worse outcomes.
2007: The FDA approves the first integrase inhibitor, Isentress (raltegravir).
2010: The iPrEx study shows that Truvada (TDF/emtricitabine) reduces HIV risk for gay and bi men.
2011: The HPTN 052 trial shows that antiretroviral treatment reduces the risk of HIV transmission.
2012: DHHS guidelines recommend HIV treatment for all.
2012: The FDA approves Truvada for pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
2015: The START trial shows the benefits of early HIV treatment.
2015: The World Health Organization recommends universal treatment for people living with HIV.
2018: The FDA approves Trogarzo (ibalizumab) for people with multidrug-resistant HIV.
2020: The FDA approves the first HIV attachment inhibitor, Rukobia (fostemsavir).
2021: The FDA approves Cabenuva (cabotegravir/rilpivirine), the first long-acting injectable regimen.
THE GREAT PROGRESS
verywellhealth.com
There can be little doubt that the drugs used to treat HIV have advanced enormously over the past 25 years. What some may not realize is just how much antiretroviral therapy has improved since 1996, when the first triple-drug therapy changed the very course of the AIDS pandemic.
Most importantly, with optimal treatment, a person newly infected with HIV can expect to enjoy a normal to near-normal life expectancy. According to research published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, a 20-year-old who tests positive for HIV today could very well live into their 70s and beyond.
Antiretroviral drugs are one of the major scientific breakthroughs of modern medicine, transforming a disease that one thought to be a death sentence into a chronically managed condition.
UNDIAGNOSED PEOPLE
Recently one of the HIV doctors in N. Ireland told that 25% of people with it dont know they have it.
That’s sad and serious.
Those people are a danger to themselves and a danger to others.
Everyone should get checked.
And if you are UNDECTABLE (meaning that the tests cannot fetect any HIV in your blood) you are also UNTRANSMITTABLE (unable to pass HIV on to others) which is wonderful.
BISHOP PAT BUCKLEY 