How many times have you started to have a conversation with someone about Hepatitis C only to have it blow up in your face? Have you ever heard someone say something about Hep C that didn't seem quite right to you? You were probably right something was amiss. A discussion about Hepatitis C can...
As per Wikipedia, the definition of a stigma is as follows: "Stigma is a word that originally means a "sign", "point", or "branding mark"." Wikipedia goes on to call stigma "A badge of shame, a physical mark of infamy or disgrace." Damn that w...
Recently, the CDC (Center for Disease Control) issued a statement that all Baby Boomers should be tested for Hepatitis C. The question often comes up as to why this particular segment of people is so vulnerable. What does being born between 1945 and 1965 have to do with Hepatitis C? What was di...
Buyer Beware! There are several snake oil salesmen out there who are claiming to have cured their own Hepatitis C with herbs, supplements and parking lot gravel. Okay, maybe not the parking lot gravel but it might as well be. What you need to remember is that there are two different types of...
Most every adult woman (and an occasional man) has enjoyed a manicure and a pedicure at a nail salon or spa. That 30 minute pedicure can be so relaxing but are you aware of the danger lurking in that nail salon? Although few individuals recognize the medical risks associated with this common pr...
Introduction
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a virus that breaks down the immune system. It can be transmitted by blood and other bodily fluids. Ways of transmission include but are not limited to unprotected sexual activities and sharing needles. HIV, if not treated, will eventually develop into Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), a terminal disease that often results in death because it shuts down the immune system completely. There is no cure for HIV but it is preventable.
HIV and AIDS is a growing problem in Aboriginal communities. The National Aboriginal HIV and AIDS Toolkit will be focusing on the following four target populations; Aboriginal women, Aboriginal Youth, Men who have sex with men, and People who are incarcerated or who were incarcerated.
According to the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), Aboriginal people are overrepresented in the HIV epidemic in Canada. Between 1979 and December 31, 2008, there have been 21,300 AIDS cases reported to the Centre for Communicable Diseases and Infection Control (CCDIC), of which 16,824 (79%) included information on ethnicity. Of these 16,824 cases, 690 were reported to be Aboriginal people (4.1%).Yet, according to Census Canada (2006), Aboriginal people only make up 3.8% of the population.
In 2008, PHAC surveillance data demonstrated that Aboriginal people make up a growing percentage of positive HIV test reports and reported AIDS cases, with injecting drug use (IDU) being a key mode of transmission in the Aboriginal community. IDU accounts for more HIV infections and AIDS cases among Aboriginal women than Aboriginal men. Between 1998 and the end of 2006, IDU was the exposure category for 53.7% of HIV-positive test reports among Aboriginal men and 64.4% of HIV-positive test reports among Aboriginal women. In reported AIDS cases among Aboriginal people between November 1979 and the end of 2006, injection drug use was the exposure category for 62.3% of reported AIDS cases among Aboriginal women and 32.1% of reported AIDS cases among Aboriginal men.
This draws attention to the need for community based culturally appropriate interventions to reduce the spread of new infections. It is essential that as members of these communities that we are prepared. Being prepared includes having the tools on hand to respond to the needs of our people. CAAN believes that education is the key to building HIV and AIDS awareness. Therefore, when developing this Toolkit, is actively partnering with organizations across the country to help gather resources to help you reach the target populations who are at highest risk.
Please sign the ATC Salvage Therapy Petition Join us in asking Congressman Alcee Hastings and Congresswomen Maxine Waters to send a ‘Dear Colleague’ letter to Anthony Fauci, Director of NIAID, asking for the federal facilitation of apricitabine (ATC). ATC is a phase III nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NRTI) that has been shown to be safe and effective in treating people with HIV. It works against viruses that are resistant to several other nukes and could ...
Researchers from Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the University of Massachusetts Medical School announced today at CROI2013 the discovery of the first infant functionally cured of HIV. The baby, a female now two and a half years old, received 3 HIV medications when brought to the hospital at 30 hours old. Viral load tests were performed during the first few weeks that showed a rapidly decreasing viral load which reached ...
At the 19th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2012) in Washington D.C., the CDC reported that only 1 out of 4 HIV patients in the U.S. have HIV under control, which is defined as complete viral suppression. Warning bells should be ringing in the scientific and HIV advocacy communities. While much progress has been made in the last three decades in the treatment of HIV, tens of thousands of people living with HIV (PLWH) are currently struggling to construct viable treat...
Paige Rawl is 17 and HIV positive, but while her life has been shaped by HIV it isn't ruled by it. When Paige Rawl starts her senior year at Indianapolis’s Herron High School next month, she'll be cheer captain and a member of the student government and prom committee. This summer, the 17-year-old held down a part-time job at Hollister, hawking the popular Southern California-inspired clothing brand. The all-American girl — who happens to be HIV positive. Paige was in...
The HIV community has been abuzz with the August FDA approval of what had been termed “the Quad”, the second one-pill-once-a-day combination antiretroviral drug. Marketed by Gilead under the name Stribild, the drug contains two NRTIs (tenofovir and emtricitabine), an integrase inhibitor (elvitegravir) and an integrase booster (cobicistat) and is approved for use in treatment naïve patients with either drug resistant or wild type virus. In comparison to Atripla, the first...

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a supplemental new drug application (sNDA) for SUSTIVA® (efavirenz), including dosing recommendations for...

California and other states would be pressured to amend or repeal criminal laws that single out HIV-positive people under a bipartisan bill co-authored and introduced this week by Rep. Barbara...
Mission Statement
At HIV Haven we wish to provide our readers with vital cutting edge information to help expand HIV knowledge and promote activism, particularly that which works towards an end to the HIV pandemic. It is our desire to bring to you the scientific, medical and social advances that given the appropriate attention and support, could change the course of the HIV pandemic, lessen the devastating effects of HIV and AIDS, better the quality and quantity of life for people living with HIV and even yield an eventual end to the HIV pandemic. We also provide the basics of HIV transmission and treatment.
We will focus on issues such as innovative drug development, strategic activist campaigns, HIV relationships and novel HIV and HIV cure research. We also will bring you advances in Hepatitis C (HCV), a common HIV co-infection. Whether you are living with HIV/AIDS, HIV and HCV, love someone who is, are an activist, advocate, researcher, physician or just an interested party, we hope here at HIV Haven we can help you find what you are looking for.