01 Dec 2023

The 1st of December 2023 marks the 35th annual World AIDs Day. This is a day dedicated to honouring the lives lost to AIDs as well uniting globally in the mission to eradicate HIV.  This month’s edition of Healthcare as it Happens offers a brief introduction to understanding AIDs, the medical progress that’s been made in recent years, and the powerful voices in the fight against stigma and misinformation.  

What is AIDs? 

AIDs (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) describes the most advanced stage of a virus called HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus). ‘Immunodeficiency’ refers to the weakening of the immune system. Our immune systems are built of all the ways that our body prevents us from catching illnesses and infections, ranging from our skin to our white blood cells that are quietly working away to protect us. When HIV reaches the most advanced stage, the immune system is significantly damaged and vulnerable. ‘AIDs’ is used to describe a number of potentially life-threatening infections and illnesses that happen when the virus has significantly damaged the immune system.  

HIV has been passed on between humans for many decades but was only identified in the early 1980s. Thankfully, today, there are very effective drug treatments that enable most people with the virus to live a long and healthy life. With an early diagnosis and effective treatments, most people with HIV will not develop any AIDS-related illnesses and will live a near-normal lifespan. 

 

Changing the Message in 2023 

As you’ll know from our activity on public health messaging, the way that health information is communicated to the public is a hugely important area of healthcare. The way that medical conditions are portrayed in media and advertising can influence and reinforce public opinion, impacting how people approach their own health and the health of others.  

In 1986 the British government launched the world's first ever public health campaign on HIV AIDs, often remembered as the ‘Don’t Die of Ignorance’ campaign. This campaign included fear-inducing TV adverts designed to shock the public.  

 

In October 2023, the Scottish government and Terrence Higgins trust launched the first TV campaign since the 1980s. The tone is dramatically different from that broadcast nearly 40 years ago, with a focus on challenging the negative stigma attached to people living with HIV.  

Compare these two adverts – what impact are they trying to make? What do they say about the context that they were created in?  

Towards a cure  

Alongside public health messaging, a lot has happened in the world of medical research since the 1980s. Today, drugs can treat and control HIV infection. People who take daily medication can lower the amounts of the virus in their body so much that their blood tests don’t even show it’s there. They can live long, healthy lives. They’re at almost no risk of passing the virus to others. As a result, global deaths from HIV/Aids have halved in the last 20 years. The number of new cases has also shown a similar trend.  

Whilst there is still not a definite cure for HIV, significant advancements have been made in recent years. If you read last month’s edition of Health Care as it Happens for World Science Day, you’ll know that stem cell and gene therapy is one of the biggest areas of development in current medical research. In, 2022 a woman in New York became the third person to be cured of HIV by receiving a stem cell transplant using umbilical cord blood cells from a donor. With breakthroughs like this, medical and scientific professionals are optimistic about the future. Some scientists suggest that you might be able to simply get a shot that delivers genes to your blood cells that stimulate them to wipe out HIV. 

Fighting the Stigma 

As we’ve seen so far, early intervention and treatment of HIV can be lifesaving. Fighting stigma and misinformation on HIV is a huge part of ensuring that everyone can get the early treatment they need. A recent official survey on HIV stigma carried out across Europe reveals that nearly a third of people living with HIV hadn’t told any family members, with a quarter being rejected by their friends since their diagnosis. Equally concerning, a similar number feared being treated differently by healthcare professionals, with one in seven people avoiding healthcare services altogether. Organisations like The Terrence Higgins Trust and National AIDs trust play huge part in campaigning to ensure that accurate information is spread to the public so that people living with HIV can live happy and healthy lives.

The campaign work of these organisations has recently been reflected in law, with the introduction of equal in fertility rights for people living with non-detectable HIV. “There’s no reason for people living with HIV who have an undetectable viral load to be denied the same fertility treatment as everyone else and it’s right the law reflects that,” says Debbie Laycock, head of policy at Terrence Higgins Trust speaking after the announcement in October 2023 . This is mirrored by Deborah Gold, CEO of National AIDS Trust, who pleased to see that this change in law now ‘follows the science’ 

 

Find out more about World AIDs Day