HIV/AIDS Discovery

Shit! There was one last thing that I got excited about reading today and I wanted to share it on my blog!! So scientists have discovered a potentially GIANT breakthrough on the front for an HIV/AIDS vaccine! US scientists have identified 3 antibodies against the virus, one of them neutralizes nearly 91% of all HIV strains!

The antibodies were found in the blood of a 60 year old African-American man who is known by the scientific literature as "Donor 45". His body naturally made these antibodies! Researchers screened 25 million of his cells to find that 12 produced these antibodies. Now for the hard part....scientists need to discover how to create a vaccine or something that will cause any body to be able to produce these antibodies. However, this is a huge step and is exciting news! Yes it will take awhile before this goes anywhere usable, but the fact that it has been found is something.

Internation AIDS Memorial

Yesterday was the International AIDS Candlelight Memorial in Ottawa and across over 115 other countries. This is the second year that Ottawa has been doing the memorial. I was at last year's memorial with my Baba and I thought it was really good. My partner at the time pretty much organized it and my really amazing friend Elliott was there dressed in his suit with red flip-flops lol and he did a passionate speech; they had other speakers and performances. This year I found the whole thing a little different for me. So much has changed in that year since the last memorial. I have a few friends with HIV, and in February I lost a friend who died of AIDS-related illnesses. So this year, sitting in the park holding my flower and candle (that are distributed by the AIDS Committee of Ottawa to people at the memorial), it was a different mood for me. Last year was more of a celebration for the health of my friends and a silent protest to the less than adequate support and everything for people living with HIV. This year, it was more somber for me, thinking yes that I'm happy my friends are healthy (some healthier than me most of the time lol), but I thought of my friend RIchard. I met him while I started doing my community clinical placement with Bruce House and he quickly became a friend of Amanda (my clinical partner) and mine. He was always happy (even when sick or not doing very great). He was beyond easy to talk to and helped us immensely with our project at Bruce House. I would see him every once in awhile downtown doing so shopping or what not. Then after my placement I continued to volunteer there because Bruce House was more family-like than work and I had become really close with all the residents and staff. After a while, I was unable to continue volunteering during the year because I was working part-time and full-time school with clinicals and it just got to be too much. Then I found out in February that Richard had died. I was supposed to go on a trip to Miami with a friend, but cancelled it so I could make his memorial. It was a great celebration that Richard would've liked with everyone singing and dancing to the YMCA and other songs. So he's what occupied my mind a lot through the speeches and the performances last night, in addition to my friends still living amazing lives with the virus. It was another beautiful memorial! Hopefully next year's will be a little happier for me.

"Ken didn't have the balls to talk about his HIV status. Discussing HIV status is always going to be difficult, especially if it’s with a new guy or a one-night stand, and you don’t know how he’s going to react. But if you try talking about HIV with him, you may find the extra honesty and trust can make your relationship, and your sex, even better."

Ottawa man's sex partners urged to come forward

All over the local news yesterday, there was pictures of a man who police have released his photo saying that anyone who's had sexual contact with him should seek medical attention and contact their help line or crime stoppers because this man is being charged with 9 counts of aggravated sexual assault. The police say that the man failed to disclose his status a life-threatening sexually transmitted disease to his partners. The police say that all the sexual encounters were consentual but the "root of the problem is that the man did not disclose his medical condition". The police say the man has contacted most of his partners via the internet and they are strongly urging anyone who's had contact to seek immediate medical attention. He is in custody now and is awaiting trial. This is the first time police have released a photo of someone who is being charged with aggravated sexual assault by failing to disclose their medical status. Last year a Hamilton area man was convicted of first-degree murder after he didn't disclose his HIV status and 7 women were infected with the infection and 2 women died from AIDS-related illnesses.

Now here's what I think........

What I don't know is the solution to situations like these where someone knowingly puts people in potential danger by not disclosing his status; however, I don't believe in the criminalization of HIV as this is a ridiculous not effective cover so that it looks like the government and police are doing something to solve the issue. Criminalization only perpetuates HIV stigma greatly and will only lead to more greater problems; people stopping getting tested for fear of persecution when knowing status, HIV "witch hunts", etc. More than 20% who have HIV don't even know they have it (so would these people be prosecuted too?!) and with the criminalization of HIV resulting in less people getting tested to avoid the danger of knowing their status, this 20% would increase meaning less people knowing their status to tell their partners. See the slippery slope yet people? Criminalization doesn't work and you can (and I urge you to) discuss and ask a public health or sexual education nurse or doctor about this and they will tell you the same thing. Public Health has the responsibility to protect the health of the greater public more so than individuals and that is why they must do something towards people who knowing spread infectious diseases (TB, HIV, Hepatitis, Chlamydia, etc). There is no solution right now, but everyone with any medical knowledge on the issue all know that criminalization is not the answer. As well, the laws around criminalization are so foggy and are VERY much up to interpretation so you can never know really who is breaking the law. I myself have worked with these laws in some of the clinical work I have done and have been to discussion groups with lawyers and doctors and everyone agreeing that the law is very unclear. Also, as someone who has some friends who are HIV positive (one of my best friends is) and has dated someone who is positive, I've worked with people who have HIV and have been a sexual health educator for 3 years where I was a part in initiating free anonymous rapid HIV testing on campus, I feel I have a strong understanding of sexual health, rights, HIV itself, and the personal side to the disease. I am against the criminalization of HIV (there's even a video post a few days ago from me at a protest on Parliament Hill), and I think that we are heading down a slip-n-slide that is going to cause HUGE HUGE problems with respect to less people getting tested, more HIV infections, more HIV stigma, more discrimination; ultimately, the thousands of hours of work that hundreds of organizations have put in are about to be flushed down the toilet. I do think that something has to happen to individuals who are knowing putting people in danger, but for me the bigger that that needs to happen is......WE NEED A SEXUAL REVOLUTION! In the 60s there was "free love", we've had the "gay sex" revolution, we need the "own your sexual self" revolution! People! This is your body, your health, your life....it's YOUR decision to have sexual encounters. Up to you what you want to do and with whom and whether you believe a on-night stand about their status (granted you even ask), but it's a choice. Every time you engage in sex you have hundreds of choices but the first few are the most important to your health - OWN THAT! These people that blame others because they didn't disclose status, I say, "Why did you let them not use a condom? That was YOUR choice." If you don't care enough about your own health to want to protect yourself from Sexually Transmitted Infections, then why the hell should anyone else?! Own your own sexual self! Take responsibility! I think THIS is what needs to happen and then we won't have to worry about the disclosure arguments and the criminalization of HIV arguments. WE NEED A SEXUAL REVOLUTION!