HIV prevention pill may not need to be taken daily

World AIDS Day was started in 1988 by the World Health Organization to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS and mourn those who had already fallen victim to the virus. For men who had long considered condoms a life-saving measure, any excuse not to wear them felt irresponsible and unsafe. “During that period, AIDS has struck 547 people in the US and at least 21 overseas, killing 232, more than toxic shock syndrome and the Philadelphia outbreak of Legionnaire’s disease combined”, TIME noted, and the rate of occurrence was rising.

Kelley-Ross Pharmacy Group, ahead of World AIDS day on December 1, shared some preliminary findings from its pilot HIV prevention program, One-Step PrEP. The program, launched in March, aims to make it easier for patients to get a prescription for pre-exposure prophylaxis, a daily pill sold as Truvada (ASDFSDA), that can prevent a patient from contracting HIV at a 92% success rate.

Cost will be a major factor in terms of access. “However, PrEP only works if patients know about it, have access to it, and take it as prescribed”.

“We basically have a huge equity gap on our hands right now”, Tan said.

“Many people are buying PrEP online, some doctors are prescribing it with risk”, Ms Hennessy said. “This study clarifies the role Truvada can play in protecting this population”.

In the study, about 28 per cent of the participants did not take the pills at all and another 29 per cent took fewer than recommended. It has dropped from the headlines as people with HIV have begun living longer and the fear of the 1980s and 1990s has ebbed. “The opening of new medical home in Madison and our ongoing dedication to expanding HIV prevention and testing services to all who need them everywhere in Wisconsin are just two of the ways we mark this solemn and important day”.

In San Francisco, California, Truvada is being offered at no cost for at risk people who do not have insurance.

Daniel McPhail is taking part in a Victorian trial for the drug, and says it is something gay men have to think about a lot.

While 14 of the 201 people taking placebo pills became infected with HIV, there were only two infections among the 199 in the Truvada group. “The hard part is getting it to the patients who need it most and getting those patients to adhere to their medication regimens”.

But Dr. Paul MacPherson, a specialist in HIV medicine with the Ottawa Hospital who runs a PrEP clinic, said he will still continue to advise men to take Truvada daily.

Participants in the 400-person study took an average of 15 pills a month. Obviously, pregnancy and contraception are top-of-mind concerns for the vast majority of women who have sex with men. But that might not be enough to ensure they are protected, MacPherson said.

“I feel a lot safer”, he said.

“Our study provides an alternative choice for gay men”. “Interestingly, participating in the study did not influence the participants’ sexual behaviour”, Dr Tremblay said.

“It is urgent that we act on it”, she said.

The medication is Gilead’s Truvada, a combination of tenofovir and emtricitabine, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2012 to prevent HIV infections and meant to be given daily.

A spokesman for Health Minister Sussan Ley said drug manufacturers had only applied for TGA registration in Australia three years after it was registered in the US.