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Has Just Begun Says TAG 90% of the HIV-Infected Have No Drug-Weapons |
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Compiled by GayToday
As World AIDS Day approaches, members of the Treatment Action Group (TAG)
discussed the state of the AIDS epidemic, and described some of the key
issues facing AIDS activists in 1999. TAG is one of the nation's leading
AIDS treatment advocacy groups.
TAG's Executive Director Odell Mays II warned that "We have new weapons with which to fight AIDS, but we are only just beginning to fight the disease. We still have an enormous amount of work to do. Ninety percent of HIV-infected people world-wide have no access to these drugs. World-wide, the HIV epidemic continues to grow. Even for people who can afford treatment, effective regimens are difficult to take and can have important side effects." Mays added, "We need to remember the example of tuberculosis. We developed a cure for the disease more than fifty years ago, and yet it is still one of the world's leading killers. Several years ago, an epidemic of multi-drug resistant tuberculosis almost put New York City back into the era in which no effective treatment was available. We can't relax or grow complacent in the fight against infectious diseases like HIV and TB." TAG staff members also discussed important priorities for AIDS activists in 1999: The Developing World
According to TAG's Senior Policy Director Mark Harrington "The hard, cold fact is that, unless the developed world -- and in particular the United States -- acts quickly, at least seven million people worldwide are going to die of AIDS in the coming years. That number is likely to dramatically grow as sharp epidemic growth is expected in the former Soviet Union and in Southeast Asia. We have global institutions to fight AIDS, but unless we fund them adequately, they cannot do their jobs." Harrington added, "When doctors and researchers warned us in the early eighties that we needed strong, decisive intervention to prevent the spread of AIDS, the US government sat back and did nothing. Now public health officials are warning us again that swift action is needed. We cannot afford to ignore them this time." Simpler Treatment Regimens Current anti-HIV therapies can be extremely difficult to take, requiring multiple daily doses of multiple drugs, sometimes with important eating restrictions. In addition, current therapies may be associated with significant side effects. While studies have shown that treatment with these regimens is effective, many patients have difficulty sustaining life-long treatment. The development of easier treatment regimens is needed to ensure that patients are able to sustain therapy over the long-term. Spencer Cox, Director of TAG's Antivirals Project, said, "For people who have normal, busy lives, maintaining a difficult treatment regimen for life can be difficult if not impossible. Studies have suggested that people have difficulty taking antibiotics twice a day for ten days. Imagine having to take medication three times a day, every single day for the rest of your life. Successful long-term treatment of HIV is going to require easier regimens that have fewer toxicities, and that can be taken once or twice a day." Effective Salvage Regimens
While initial anti-HIV therapy is very effective in suppressing HIV, and
has clearly been shown to reduce risk of illness and death, treatment is
onerous and ultimately fails for a significant number of patients.
Salvage therapy with available drugs has not, so far, been very effective.
Simpler treatment regimens are vitally needed. New tests that measure
drug resistance may help HIV-infected people choose more effective salvage
therapy regimens. Rapid evaluation of these tests is urgently needed.
Also, new drugs are vitally needed to treat drug-resistant HIV.
Michael Marco, Co-Director of TAG's Clinical Research Project, said, "The first round of treatment fails for far too many people. Without effective backup therapy, people with HIV are still at serious risk for illness and death. Too many drug companies are wasting time studying 'me-too' drugs that are not likely to work in patients whose first treatments have failed. The industry needs urgently to target drug-resistant virus -- lives depend on it." Improving AIDS Research Programs The recent breakthroughs in AIDS treatment suggest new, important areas of AIDS research. In addition, the Office of AIDS Research at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is responsible for coordinating AIDS research programs, has a new director, Dr. Neal Nathanson. AIDS activists will be working with Dr. Nathanson to ensure that government-funded AIDS research efforts focus on pressing issues, such as the development of an effective preventative vaccine and the long-term side effects of anti-HIV therapy. TAG's Policy Director Gregg Gonsalves said, "The US government is one of the largest funders of AIDS research in the world. While industry-sponsored research plays an important role, there are some key research questions that industry won't or can't answer. Ensuring that the federal research effort fills these important gaps is a key part of the global fight against AIDS." TAG's President Barbara Hughes summed up the current challenges. "We've made enormous progress in the fight against AIDS here in the United States. The declines in the death rate that have been reported are important, and everyone involved in this fight deserves a pat on the back. But no one should be so foolish as to think that the work is finished. We still have a lot to do." Treatment Action Group: www.aidsinfonyc.org/tag. |
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