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In this issue:
• Alberta Election
2008
• Wash Your Hands!
• HIV Society of
Southeastern Alberta
• HIV study in B.C. finds many die without
treatment
• A Farewell Survey
• Scientists No Closer To
Developing HIV Vaccine Than 20 Years Ago
• Experimental Microbicide
Carraguard Does Not Provide Protection Against HIV
•
Experimental
Microbicide Tenofovir Safe for Women To Use Daily
• NYC Health Conducts Review
of Bathhouses
• More on CROI 2008 from The Body Pro
• Evolution of an
Epidemic
• Antiretrovirals Becoming More Profitable for
Pharmaceutical Industry
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Alberta Election
2008
Monday, March 3rd
is Election Day in Alberta. Only 44% of
Albertans cast their ballot in 2004, the lowest in the country for
an election in that year. Change isn't automatic; it doesn't
just occur on your behalf. You are the arbitor of change that
effects your life; only you can make your voice heard. The
process becomes flawed and easily manipulated when we
don't take an active role in exercising our franchise. Hold
your nose if you must, but, please put something on the ballot
that reflects your values.
On Monday, March 3rd...
GET OUT AND
VOTE!
>> Click
Here for Elections Alberta Website
|
 Wash Your Hands!
(Alberta Health and Wellness Influenza
Website) Next to immunization, the
single most important way to prevent influenza is to wash your hands
often. Make a habit of washing your hands often. This is
especially important after you have been in contact with someone who
has a cold or influenza. You should also wash your hands after being
around children, because children easily spread influenza in the
community. Keep your hands away from your eyes, nose and mouth,
since the virus can enter your body through these openings. Wash
your hands with soap and water, or use an alcohol-based hand
rub.
>> Click
Here for Handwashing Tips
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HIV Society of
Southeastern AlbertaA newly developed AIDS Service
Organization has take over for HANSEAA (HIV/AIDS Network of
South Eastern Alberta Association) formerly of
Medicine Hat and Brooks. The new HIV Society of
Southeastern Alberta was voted in as a member of the
Alberta Community Council on HIV (ACCH) at the February meetings in
Edmonton.
>> Click
Here for HSSA Website
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HIV study in B.C.
finds many die without treatment
(CTV.ca and The Canadian Press)
VANCOUVER Forty per cent of the
people who died of HIV-AIDS in British Columbia never accessed
life-saving treatment even though it was free, according to a new
study released Friday. The study by the B.C. Centre for Excellence
in HIV-AIDS looked into more than 1,400 HIV-related deaths in the
province between 1997 and 2005. In that period of time, a total of
567 people died without ever receiving the highly effective
antiretroviral treatment.
>> Click
Here for Article
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A Farewell
Survey
As you may be aware, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Information
Centre, a program of the Canadian Public Health
Association (CPHA), will cease operations, effective March 31,
2008. As a part of their wrap-up activities, the
Information Centre is conducting an evaluation of the
services they have provided over the past 4 years as a part of
the Federal Initiative on HIV/AIDS. They are interested
in getting your opinions about the Canadian HIV/AIDS Information
Centre. The information you give will be kept anonymous and will be
presented in a final report to the Centre and to the funder, the
Public Health Agency of Canada.
>> Click
Here for Survey
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Scientists No
Closer To Developing HIV Vaccine Than 20 Years Ago
During the annual American Association for the Advancement of Science
meeting on Thursday in Boston, AAAS President David Baltimore said
scientists are no closer to developing an HIV vaccine than they were
when vaccine research began, BBC News reports (Briggs, BBC
News, 2/15). Baltimore, a biology professor at the California Institute of Technology, said some
scientists have begun to openly discuss the possibility of never
developing an HIV vaccine because of the virus's ability to weaken
the body's immune system while it progresses to AIDS (Connor, Independent, 2/15). "This is a huge
challenge because to control HIV immunologically, the scientific
community has to beat out nature," Baltimore said.
>> Click
Here for Article
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Experimental
Microbicide Carraguard Does Not Provide Protection Against
HIV
(Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS
Report) The experimental microbicide
Carraguard is safe but does not provide women with protection
against HIV, according to results from clinical trials conducted in
three locations in South Africa, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports
(Paulson, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, 2/18).
Microbicides include a range of products -- such as gels, films and
sponges -- that could help prevent the sexual transmission of HIV
and other infections (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report,
2/6). The study was conducted from March 2004 to March 2007 in
the South African locations of Gugulethu, Isipingo and Soshanguve.
Carraguard is developed by the New York City-based not-for-profit Population Council and contains carrageenan, which
is derived from seaweed.
>> Click
Here for Article
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Experimental
Microbicide Tenofovir Safe for Women To Use Daily
(Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS
Report) The experimental microbicide
tenofovir is safe for women to use daily, according to results from
clinical trials funded by NIH and conducted in three locations in the U.S. and
India, though it is too early to tell if it actually prevents HIV
infection, Reuters reports (Fox,
Reuters, 2/25). Microbicides include a range of
products -- such as gels, films and sponges -- that could help
prevent the sexual transmission of HIV and other infections (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 2/6). A
study released last week showed that the microbicide candidate Carraguard, though safe, was ineffective in
preventing HIV transmission. Other candidates, including nonoxynol-9 and Ushercell, have been found to increase women's risk
of HIV infection, according to Reuters
(Reuters, 2/25).
>> Click
Here for Article
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NYC Health
Conducts Review of Bathhouses
The New York City Department of Health and Mental
Hygiene last fall began a review of bathhouses in the city after
it recorded between 2001 and 2006 a 33% increase in new
HIV diagnoses among men younger than age 30 who have sex with men,
the New York Times reports. The review also
includes sex clubs and "sex parties," which charge an admission fee
and have regular locations and hours, according to the
Times. City health inspectors for 20 years have
enforced a provision in the state's sanitary code that prohibits
bathhouses and other businesses from providing facilities for sex;
however, some businesses avoid the rule by providing private rooms
that inspectors do not enter, according to the Times. A
weekly newspaper for MSM last month published an internal health
department memo that listed possible ways the agency could handle
bathhouses and other "commercial sex venues" -- including increasing
efforts to close such businesses or mandating that they comply with
safer-sex regulations -- in an effort to reduce the spread of HIV
among MSM. (Click above for NY Times article)
>> Click
Here for Kaiser Article
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More on CROI 2008
from The Body Pro
Comprehensive Summaries, In-Depth Analyses, One-on-One
Interviews and More: The Body PRO Covers CROI
2008 Here's just a small taste
of what you'll find in The Body PRO's coverage of CROI 2008:
- Cal Cohen, M.D., M.S., reviews
important findings with implications for the management of HIV
treatment-experienced patients.
- David Wohl, M.D., summarizes
noteworthy data regarding complications of HIV and HAART.
- Kathryn Anastos, M.D., examines
a bevy of studies that investigate the natural history,
treatment and prevention of HIV in women.
- David Wohl, M.D., brings
us up to speed on new developments in first-line
antiretroviral therapy.
- Robert Schooley, M.D., provides
a wide-ranging look at the study findings presented at CROI
2008 that are most likely to change the way we look at HIV
disease.
>> Click
Here for Body Pro Listserv
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Evolution of an
Epidemic
25 Years of HIV/AIDS Media Campaigns in the
U.S. (The Drum Beat -
communit.com) Published by the Kaiser
Family Foundation, this report focuses on how national media
campaigns on HIV/AIDS have evolved over the last 25 years in the
United States, reflecting the changing nature of the disease as
awareness and treatment have progressed. It also provides insight
into the approaches, historical context, and impact of leading
national public education campaigns. The report documents some of
the shifting interests shaping advertising related to HIV/AIDS,
including government-sponsored efforts, campaigns developed by
non-profit and non-governmental groups, and messages developed by or
through partnerships with the media industry itself.
>> Click
Here for Summary & Report
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Antiretrovirals
Becoming More Profitable for Pharmaceutical Industry
(Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS
Report) Antiretroviral drugs are
becoming a "growing profit center" for the pharmaceutical industry
as treatment for HIV-positive people worldwide improves, the Los Angeles Times
reports. According to the Times, sales of
antiretrovirals for Gilead Sciences, which sells antiretrovirals to
about one half of all HIV-positive people taking drugs nationwide,
reached $3.14 billion in 2007, an increase of 48% from 2006. Sales
of all antiretrovirals are expected to increase from $6 billion in
2007 to $11 billion by 2015, according to Datamonitor. The increase in antiretroviral
profits is fueled in part by longer life expectancies for people
living with HIV/AIDS and earlier treatment of the virus. HIV vaccine
development has stalled and HIV/AIDS rates are increasing in some
communities after being stabilized for years, the Times
reports. In addition, once-daily antiretrovirals such as
Truvada and Atripla have made the virus easier to treat and have
helped increase treatment adherence.
>> Click
Here for Summary and Access to LA Times
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9th Annual Alberta
Harm Reduction Conference
Who Cares? Valuing Life and
Health
9th Annual
Conference Planning
Underway
The 9th Annual
Alberta Harm Reduction Conference planning is underway. The date has
been set for March 26th & 27th, 2008 in Red Deer,
Alberta. This event will continue to lead some of the
most progressive harm reduction education and skill transfer
opportunities in the country.
Venue: Capri Hotel and
Convention Centre
Click
Here for More Information
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2008 Western
Canadian 8th Biennial Sexual Health Conference
MOVING UPSTREAM: INTEGRATING SEXUAL HEALTH
PROMOTION with STI/HIV
May 1 & 2, 2008 at Lister Hall,
University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta
Keynote Speaker: Stephen
Lewis Click
Here for Conference Webpage
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