The WHO yesterday said that all people with the HIV virus should be given antiretroviral therapy (ART) as soon as possible after diagnosis, meaning 37 million people worldwide should be on treatment.
Recent clinical trials have confirmed that early use of the drugs extended the lives of people with HIV and reduced the risk of transmitting the disease to their partners, the WHO said in a statement expanding current guidelines to its 194 member states.
‘IMMEDIATE ACCESS’
“Everybody living with HIV has the right to life-saving treatment. The new guidelines are a very important step towards ensuring that all people living with HIV have immediate access to antiretroviral treatment,” UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibe said.
“According to UNAIDS estimates, expanding ART to all people living with HIV and expanding prevention choices can help avert 21 million AIDS-related deaths and 28 million new infections by 2030,” he added.
WHO GUIDELINES
Under current WHO guidelines, 28 million people are deemed eligible for antiretroviral treatment.
Major suppliers of antiretroviral drugs include Gilead, ViiV Healthcare, which is majority-owned by GlaxoSmithKline, and multiple Indian generic manufacturers.
The WHO said that all people at “substantial” risk of contracting HIV should also be given preventive antiretroviral treatment, not just men who have sex with men.
The medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) welcomed the move to expand treatment, but said that “turning this new recommendation into reality would require dramatically increased support from donors and governments.”
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