November 27, 2017
We are excited to share with you our new episode of Px Pulse, AVAC’s podcast covering vital topics in HIV prevention research. Find it at avac.org/px-pulse or listen on iTunes!
This month Px Pulse looks at the standard of care in HIV prevention trials in the era of oral PrEP. This issue has been discussed and hotly debated lately—and for good reason: It’s complicated. In this episode, we take you deeper into this pressing issue.
Around the world, a number of large clinical trials, ongoing and planned, are testing new HIV prevention interventions. Many of these trials are happening in a few regions of Southern Africa. In these same areas, oral PrEP—a proven and highly effective prevention method—is rolling out and reaching some places and populations better than others. The obligation of researchers to provide oral PrEP to participants in HIV prevention trials, and precisely how they should do so, was the focus of a summit convened by the South African Medical Research Council in October in Cape Town.
In this episode, you’ll hear veteran advocate voices, Tian Johnson and Yvette Raphael, challenge the thinking that providing oral PrEP in trials can be separate from national rollout. They call on researchers to partner with advocates so that what happens at the trial site can be integrated with the national PrEP agenda. Director of Research at Wits RHI Sinead Delany-Moretlwe discusses the future of trial design and research, touching on how the prevention options of tomorrow will further complicate these questions.
Don’t miss it—and do let us know what you think!