Gilead launches ‘La CafeterI=Ia’ to stimulate dialogue about advances and challenges in HIV

VALENCIA (SERVIMEDIA). In celebration of World AIDS Day, which is celebrated on December 1, Gilead Sciences launched “La CafeterI=Ia,” a meeting place designed to discuss progress and major challenges related to HIV.

According to the company, this temporary space for communication was created through the scientific collaboration of organizations such as GeSIDA, Asociación RIS, Seisida and Cesida and was visited by more than 400 people. In a setting reminiscent of the historic cafés that were the cradle of some of the world’s most influential intellectual and cultural movements, Gilead wanted to bring HIV closer to society, demonstrate its commitment to the disease, and make progress toward ending the epidemic for everyone, everywhere. . In this context, numerous experts, as well as close and experienced experts, reviewed key aspects related to HIV and its impact.

One of these themes was to highlight the achievement of “UNDETECTABLE = UNTRANSMITTABLE (I=I),” which means that a person with HIV, through antiretroviral treatment, can reduce their viral load to undetectable levels, thereby avoiding transmission of HIV. According to the company, this is an important milestone that represents increased infection control by improving the quality of life of people living with HIV and, in addition, makes a significant contribution to the fight against this pandemic.

He added that despite the enormous progress that has been made since the first cases of HIV were identified, “there are still many problems to be solved, both clinical and social. Therefore, during the day, many of them were resolved.” aging, stigma, the impact of comorbidities, the reality of chemsex, or strategies to empower people with HIV were central to these conversations.”

Dr. Ivan Solar Gil, a specialist in family and community medicine, took part in the first session of the day on the topic “Advances in the field of HIV and expectations for the future; and Dr. Ángel Iván Díaz Salado, emergency specialist at the Infanta Cristina University Hospital, remembering that despite the medical advances made in turning a fatal disease into a chronic and manageable one, the social problem remains enormous due to the enormous stigma and the great lack of knowledge about existing infection in the general population.

“Achieving undetectable HIV is key to creating a barrier-free society, but the current comprehensive approach must also address the clinical, social and emotional needs of patients. Early detection and access to effective treatment are fundamental to achieving this goal, but multidisciplinary care and increased equity in care are vital,” Gilead Sciences said.

Another of the main topics addressed in “La CafeterI=Ia” by Dr. Alfonso Cabello, Deputy Director of the Internal Medicine Service and Department of Infectious Diseases at the Jiménez Díaz Foundation University Hospital, and Jorge Garrido, Executive Director of Apoyo Positivo, was sexual drug use. Let us remember that chemsex – as this practice is called – is on the rise, adding more and more users every year; especially among men who have sex with men.

An estimated 30% of people with HIV engage in the practice, and experts stressed that the solution, although difficult, requires accurate and reliable information about the risks associated with the practice. Among them, they highlighted that it is estimated that the practice of chemsex can triple the risk of contracting HIV and even double the risk of STIs such as chlamydia and gonorrhea.

Health

The long-term health of people with HIV was a topic analyzed during the meeting by Dr. Maria Velasco, specialist in infectious diseases and tropical medicine at the Alcorcón Foundation Hospital, and Dr. Maria José Fuster, executive director of Seisida. Stigmas aside, people with HIV can have hope and a quality of life similar to that of other people not infected with the virus.

However, due to related factors and lifestyle, they have a higher risk of developing certain pathologies (comorbidities) earlier. In this sense, it was emphasized that every second person with HIV is over 50 years of age and, according to estimates, in 2030, one in ten will have more than one comorbidity, and one in two will have polypharmacy. Health care issues such as the need to treat comorbidities and prevent premature aging have become major areas of research need to advance.

Emotional well-being versus physical well-being was another topic discussed on the day, attended by Dr. Alberto Díaz de Santiago, Physician Assistant of the HIV, STI and PrEP Unit of the Internal Medicine Service of Puerta de Hierro. Majadahonda University Hospital; Sarah Martin, HIV nurse at the Ramón y Cajal University Hospital in Madrid, and Iván Zaro, director of health at Imagina MORE.

Often, a patient’s perception of HIV differs from that of a health care professional, especially in areas that affect quality of life such as anxiety, depression or insomnia. This is why close communication between physician and patient is so important to identify factors that influence the holistic well-being of people with HIV. HIV treatment must go beyond viral control, integrating emotional and physical health and ensuring good adherence to treatment. Total health is the key to a fulfilling life, and the commitment includes support and solutions for the total well-being of people with HIV.

The cafeteria concluded with a meeting with Dr. Maria Lagarde, Associate Professor, Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital, on October 12; Teresa Martínez Burgoa, nurse at the San Carlos Clinical Hospital, and Dr. José Luis Casado, physician specialist at the Infectious Diseases Service of the Ramón y Cajal University Hospital, on the resistance that can develop in HIV and whose emergence represents a serious problem in this infections.

Factors that contribute to its occurrence include poor adherence to treatment, decreased CD4 cell counts, concomitant infections, high levels of HIV RNA, and advanced stage of infection. This resistance has varying consequences both for the lives of people with the infection (with greater likelihood of virological failure, increased mortality and associated morbidity) and for public health, compromising UNAIDS goals and increasing the costs of monitoring people with HIV.