Treatment as prevention for HIV/AIDS

The province of British Columbia has seen encouraging results in the use of HIV/AIDS treatment as a way to prevent new cases of infection. The data was presented by Julio Montaner and Evan Wood of the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS at the University of British Columbia.

In the mid-90s, Vancouver had one of the highest HIV infection rates in the developed world. Infections were more concentrated in Vancouver’s notorious downtown eastside – about 10 blocks east of this year’s AAAS meetings. This made the neighbourhood, with a large number of intravenous drug users (IDU), an ideal living laboratory in which to study possible solutions to the epidemic.

The treatment that emerged as the most effective is highly active antiretroviral therapy, known as HAART. From the time HIV/AIDS was first discovered in the mid-80s until the early to mid-90s, the mortality rate as well as the rate of new infections in British Columbia increased steadily. From about 1993 to 2003, the province saw a rapid decrease in the death rate, as well as improved life expectancy among the HIV-positive population.

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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