The Next Frontier of U=U Science

The science is clear, the evidence overwhelming: HIV-positive people with an undetectable viral load cannot transmit the virus to sex partners. This message has gone a long way in combating HIV stigma, as Carrie Foote, Ph.D., a founder of the Undetectable Equals Untransmittable (U=U) campaign, can attest.

“Having tested positive myself in 1988, I lived in fear for nearly 25 years,” said Foote, speaking at the 2019 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI). “U=U takes away that fear.”

At CROI 2019, the evidence of U=U was not up for debate. Rather, attendees gathered on March 6 to learn about the next frontiers of HIV transmission research at a symposium titled “The Story of U: Implications of Undetectable Viral Load on Transmission.”

A Swiss History of U=U

In 2008, Switzerland’s Pietro Vernazza, M.D., published a controversial statement in the Bulletin of Swiss Medicine that said people with an undetectable viral load for at least six months do not need to use condoms during sex to prevent HIV transmission.

That statement sparked a global debate on the validity of a premise that, at the time, ran counter to medical consensus about condom use.

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During the Canada Post strike announced September 25, 2025, the following measures will be undertaken to minimize service disruption to BC-CfE clients and providers.

  • The BC-CfE Laboratory has transitioned to private courier for delivery of outgoing reports and documents. Results required urgently can be faxed upon request. (Lab Contact Information: Phone 604-806-8775; FAX 604-806-9463)
  • The BC-CfE Drug Treatment Program (DTP) will fax outgoing forms and documents to the provider’s office. (DTP Contact Information: Phone 604-806-8515; FAX 604-806-9044)
  • St. Paul’s Hospital Ambulatory Pharmacy has transitioned to private courier for delivery of medications. We recommend requesting medication at least 2 weeks in advance in case of delivery delays, particularly to rural/remote parts of BC. (Contact Information: Phone 1-800-547-3622; FAX 604-806-8675)

During the Canada Post strike, we recommend that documents be faxed or couriered to our sites, versus utilization of regular mail service

The BC-CfE Laboratory is streamlining reporting processes for certain tests in order to simplify distribution and record-keeping, and to ensure completeness of results. Beginning September 2, 2025, results for the ‘Resistance Analysis of HIV-1 Protease and Reverse Transcriptase’ (Protease-RT) and ‘HIV-1 Integrase Resistance Genotype’ tests will be combined into a single ‘HIV-1 Resistance Genotype Report’.
For more details and example reports, please click on the button below