August 8, 2007

•  HIV TREATMENT

U.S. Approves Selzentry, First CCR5 Inhibitor
On Aug. 6, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave the green light to Selzentry (maraviroc), the first in a new class of HIV meds known as CCR5 inhibitors. This is good news for treatment-experienced people who have few other options. However, Selzentry only works against a certain type of HIV; a special blood test will determine whether Selzentry can work against your HIV. The drug is expected to be widely available in the United States by September.

In the meantime, there's an expanded access program for Selzentry that can help people with limited treatment options get access to the new drug. Click here to learn more about this program, which is expected to continue through the end of the year.


The Basics on Selzentry: A TheBody.com Exclusive Interview
To learn all about the newest HIV medication Selzentry (maraviroc), we spoke with Joel Gallant, M.D., one of the leading HIV specialists in the United States. In this exclusive interview (available as a podcast or a transcript), Dr. Gallant explains how maraviroc is different from other HIV meds, who should consider taking the drug, what side effects it may cause, and what needs to happen before you'll know whether Selzentry will work against your HIV.

Want to read about the latest research on Selzentry? At the 4th International AIDS Society conference, which took place in Sydney last month, researchers presented new analyses from the two major clinical trials of Selzentry. Click here for a recap of the data from TheBody.com's Edwin DeJesus, M.D.


The "Other" CCR5 Inhibitor: Latest Research on Vicriviroc
Selzentry may be the first CCR5 inhibitor to win U.S. approval, but it's not the only one in development. Vicriviroc, which suffered a setback last year due to side effect fears, is still working its way through clinical trials. TheBody.com's Edwin DeJesus, M.D., provides an update on the latest research presented at the 4th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention.

•  IAS 2007: COVERAGE & PODCASTS

The Voices of IAS 2007: Listen to Expert Interviews
Our in-depth podcast coverage of the 4th International AIDS Society Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (IAS 2007) continues to pour in! You can now listen to 26 different interviews (and counting!) with renowned HIV experts, as well as the researchers who conducted some of IAS 2007's most interesting studies. Here's just a sampling of the wide range of interviews you can listen to:

• Conference Highlights: Eric Daar, M.D., discusses the ongoing debate about when to start treatment and provides his take on circumcision as prevention in the developed world.
  
• Drugs in the Pipeline: Cal Cohen, M.D., discusses the role that a new generation of HIV meds will play in keeping HIV at bay.
  
• New NNRTIs: Anthony Mills, M.D., explains the latest results from the DUET studies, which are designed to assess the safety and efficacy of TMC125 (etravirine), an NNRTI in development.
  
• Safer Sex & HIV Prevention: Nancy Padian, Ph.D., summarizes her presentation on prevention technologies such as microbicides, dental dams and the female condom.

For a full index of available podcasts, click here. Additional information on highlighted studies is also available, and transcripts will be added soon. Also be sure to read or listen to our three daily overviews of IAS 2007 highlights, as well as a down-to-earth, non-clinical breakdown of major IAS 2007 research by Daniel Berger, M.D.

•  LIVING WITH HIV

Do Priorities Differ for Gay and Straight HIVers? Survey Says: No
Gay and straight HIVers alike say that compassionate, competent HIV care is their No. 1 priority, according to a 60-person survey conducted by a Florida physician. Personal appearance and aging tied for second place, which reflects concerns about body fat changes and other long-term complications of HIV and medications. Surprisingly, one of the lowest priorities for survey participants was protecting others from HIV -- a result which, according to the physician, highlights the difficulties of disclosure and the fear of rejection many people with HIV still face.

•  HIV POLICY IN THE UNITED STATES

Cutbacks in Ryan White Funds Mean Fewer Support Services for Some HIVers
The Ryan White CARE Act is supposed to fund HIV-related health care and support programs throughout the United States. But funding changes put in motion last year have left some HIVers experiencing hardships and anxiety, as federal money increasingly fails to stretch as far as is needed. Support programs such as food deliveries, housing and legal services are taking the biggest hit. "These nonmedical services are what keep people like me alive," said one HIVer whose meds have stopped working. "If I decide to keep fighting this disease, I wonder if I'll get the help I need."


New Bill Calls For Earlier Access to HIV Meds
More and more HIV doctors are suggesting that HIVers start treatment while they're still feeling healthy, with a CD4 count of 350 slowly becoming the norm. However, low-income HIVers in the United States have to wait until they're officially classified as "disabled" before Medicaid will pay for their treatment. Seem fair? If you answered no, many agree with you -- including several members of the U.S. Congress. They've introduced a bill called the Early Treatment for HIV Act that, if passed, could provide HIV meds to thousands of people before they begin to get sick.


U.S. Congress May Consider Repealing Ban on HIVer Immigration
New legislation introduced to the U.S. Congress could finally repeal the ban on HIVers traveling and immigrating to the United States. "We can't even hold an international AIDS conference in the United States of America because of this travel ban," says Rep. Barbara Lee, who introduced the bill. "I think that is about as un-American as you can get." Even President Bush has spoken out in support of lifting the ban on foreign-born HIVers entering the country. However, despite a widely-publicized vow on World AIDS Day 2006 to lift the ban, nothing has changed.

Do you support eliminating the HIV immigration ban? Call up your U.S. representative and tell the person who answers the phone that you are a constituent and you urge the representative to cosponsor H.R. 3337, the HIV Nondiscrimination in Travel and Immigration Act. If you're not sure who your representative in Congress is, click here to look him or her up.

•  HIV IN THE NEWS

Researchers Offer New Theory on How HIV Progresses to AIDS
Common scientific wisdom on how HIV infection progresses to full-blown AIDS might be wrong, according to two U.S. researchers. Most scientists believe that many strains of HIV battle in the body until the fittest strain -- the one that makes the most copies of itself -- wins, eventually destroying the immune system and causing AIDS. Surprisingly, the new theory proposes that the real culprit is a slow-replicating strain that's especially bad news for CD4 cells.

•  HIV TRANSMISSION

Why Is There Still No Vaccine for HIV?
Although many promising HIV vaccines have been developed, even the best candidates so far haven't worked out. So why haven't we found a vaccine for HIV yet? In this overview from AIDS Community Research Initiative of America, learn why previous HIV vaccines flopped, how the current crop of vaccine candidates might work and why a growing number of experts believe that scientists won't be able to develop a vaccine that completely prevents HIV -- at least not anytime soon.


HIV Rates Remarkably High Among Female Inmates in Washington, D.C.
Women in Washington, D.C., prisons are more than twice as likely to have HIV as men in the city's prisons, according to city officials. More than 7 percent of the 607 female inmates who were tested had HIV, compared to 2.7 percent of 2,609 men. Health officials said the higher rate of infection among women in Washington's jails was unsurprising, because most female inmates are charged with commercial sex work and injection drug use.


Hispanic, Black Men in U.S. More Likely to Get HIV From Drug Use
Experts say that drug use (and the risky behaviors that drug use can cause) are fueling the spread of HIV among Hispanic and black men in the United States. Black and Hispanic men are nearly three times as likely as white, non-Hispanic men to contract HIV through shared needles, according to official U.S. statistics. Black and Hispanic women, on the other hand, are less likely than white women to become HIV positive through injection drug use.

•  MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Black, Gay Leaders Say "Enough is Enough"
What do you get when you mix a bunch of U.S. community advocates with a healthy dose of anger over the high HIV infection rates among black, gay men? The National Black Gay Men's Advocacy Coalition. Many activists were motivated by a U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report showing that nearly half of African-American gay men in five U.S. cities were HIV positive. Keith Green, associate editor for Positively Aware, writes about the steps black leaders across the country have taken since to organize their communities since the release of the CDC report.


Oscar-Nominated Actress (and AIDS Activist) Rosie Perez Speaks Out
Too many people still believe that HIV can't touch them, but Academy Award nominee Rosie Perez knows better. Perez began working in AIDS activism 20 years ago at the urging of an HIV-positive friend. Five years later, she discovered her biological mother had HIV. Since then, Perez has only become more deeply involved in the fight against HIV. Fresh from her appearance as keynote speaker at the National Conference on Latinos and AIDS, Perez gave this interview on her beginnings in HIV activism and what she sees as some of the difficulties in addressing HIV in the Latino community.