While India has made laudable progress in its fight against AIDS, the time has come for it to take this further, both in terms of providing pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and in leading global efforts towards self-financing and sustainable solutions, a press release from the AIDS Society of India, a professional body of physicians and researchers in HIV care, said.
The United Nations estimates that 40.8 million persons are living with HIV globally. Of these, 25,44,000 are in India. In 2024 India reported 68,450 new infections.
Today, with the availability of potent antiretroviral therapy (ART), persons living with HIV, who have access to these medications do not fall sick with AIDS and research has shown that the life expectancy of those receiving ART and are virology suppressed is almost similar to those without HIV.
New anti-viral medicine
While there are no vaccines to prevent HIV infection, with lenacapavir, a new, long-acting injectable anti-viral medicine, HIV can now be prevented if given twice a year as pre exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).
