Evidence presented at the 8th International AIDS Society (IAS) Conference could lead to a tipping point in how and when to treat HIV, according to conference cochair Julio Montaner, MD, director of the British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS in Vancouver, Canada.
“Everything that we hoped for in 1996, that we called for in 2006, will now be demanded, based on evidence that will come together at the conference,” he told Medscape Medical News.
In 1996, scientists mobilized around triple therapy. In 2006, researchers developed the controversial strategy of seeking out and treating all people with HIV. This year, the evidence is there to put the ball back in the politicians’ court to fully support the work to “end the epidemic in our lifetime,” said Dr Montaner.
It is anticipated that at least 6000 participants from more than 125 countries will be in Vancouver to attend the conference.
At the meeting, full results will be presented from the Strategic Timing of Antiretroviral Therapy (START) trial, which was stopped early because the data showed that people with HIV have a much lower risk for AIDS and other serious illnesses if they start treatment early, Dr Montaner explained.
It is expected that results from the HPTN 052 trial will confirm whether, in people whose infections were suppressed with therapy, the dramatic decreases in sexual transmission were sustained over several years.