Category Archives: HIV

Education, Hepatitis, HIV, HIV care, HIV/Viral Hepatitis Service Integration project

State Opioid Response (SOR) Documents Provide HIV and Viral Hepatitis Information for PA

March 18, 2026 administrator Leave a comment

The State Opioid Response (SOR) Grant, HIV/Viral Hepatitis Service Integration project is a collaborative initiative by the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs and the Pennsylvania Department of Health, which aims to increase awareness of and expand access to HIV and viral hepatitis services in facilities treating persons with substance use disorder.

map listing S.O.R. resources — Click on the map to find resources in Pennsylvania.

The SOR project provides drug and alcohol treatment professionals with the resources, knowledge and technical assistance needed to implement DDAP’s policies related to HIV and viral hepatitis prevention, treatment, and care.

For information about health resources in your area, visit the SOR online resource directory or the HIV and Hepatitis Services Map. You can also find other SOR educational materials listed on our SOR archive page.

Commentary, HIV, HIV Activism

A New Language of Prevention Is Required to Address New Realities of HIV

March 10, 2026 administrator Leave a comment

From Poz.com…

By ViiV Healthcare and Alftan Dyson

When I ask people what they know about HIV, they almost always paint the same picture. So, try this: Close your eyes and imagine a person living with HIV. Who do you see?

For most people, they return a harmful, outdated, stereotype of a gay man. The association might have made sense in the past given the devasting impact that HIV has had—and continues to have—on the gay community, and the fact that media representation has reinforced this image since the beginning of the epidemic.

But here is the truth: HIV does not discriminate. The demographics of HIV epidemic have changed, and our understanding needs to catch up.

Read the article on Poz.com

HIV, HIV care, News and Information

UNAIDS Strongly Welcomes Bold New U.S. Funding Package for HIV

February 11, 2026 administrator Leave a comment

From POZ Magazine online…

GENEVA — UNAIDS welcomes the signing into law of a bipartisan US$ 5.88 billion spending package that reinforces the continued commitment and leadership of the United States in the global response to HIV.

U.S. President Donald Trump signed the consolidated spending package into law on February 3, 2026 which allocates US$4.6 billion to bilateral HIV support through the America First Global Health Strategy, US$1.25 billion to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and US$ 45 million to UNAIDS.

“I thank President Trump and the U.S. Congress for their continued commitment to HIV and global health,” said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “This U.S. investment will provide life-saving support for millions of people in partner countries and help to ensure that the global HIV response remains efficient, data-driven and delivers results.”

Read the full article.

HIV, Stigma

Dealing With HIV-Related Discrimination or Stigma in a Health Care Setting

January 22, 2026 administrator Leave a comment

From Poz Magazine online…

Alora Gale thought that by the late 2000s, most—if not all—medical providers understood that HIV does not survive long outside the body and cannot reproduce outside a human host. “Even in 2008, a quick Google search would’ve answered this question,” says Gale, 40, a Seattle-area resident who was born with HIV and formerly ran BABES, a longtime peer group for women living with HIV. But that year when she spoke to her longtime ophthalmologist about having LASIK surgery to improve her vision, the ophthalmologist consulted a LASIK-performing colleague who warned that Gale’s HIV “could become airborne and infect everyone in the room,” Gale recalls. On that basis, she was deemed ineligible for surgery.

“That’s the BS my doctor accepted and brought back to me,” she says. Despite being a longtime advocate for people living with HIV, she says she was so “shocked, dismayed and bewildered in that moment” that she just walked out without saying a word. “When things like that happen in a trusted space, it just hits differently, and I wasn’t ready to fight back.”

But that soon changed. Gale called her ophthalmologist and asked to have her records transferred to a different provider. Didn’t she want to try to talk through it first? “Absolutely not,” she says. She felt the claim was so far-fetched that the doctor should have researched it to learn that it wasn’t true.

Read the full article.

HIV, HIV care, Research

Tiny doses of THC show big benefits for HIV treatment

January 21, 2026 administrator Leave a comment

From Science Daily…

New research from Texas Biomedical Research Institute suggests that long-term use of very small amounts of THC may reduce inflammation and ease several harmful effects linked to HIV and antiretroviral therapy (ART).

THC, short for tetrahydrocannabinol, is the primary active compound found in cannabis. In this preclinical research, scientists used extremely low doses that did not cause noticeable nervous system effects such as euphoria or a “high.”

Researchers observed several potential benefits, including higher levels of serotonin and reductions in inflammation, cholesterol, and toxic secondary bile acids. One of the most striking findings was that levels of ART medications in the bloodstream were lower, even though viral suppression remained intact. Because ART drugs can strain the liver over time, this reduction may be especially meaningful. The study was conducted in animal models that closely reflect people living with HIV who are receiving ART, and the results were recently published in Science Advances.

Read the full article.

Education, HIV, HIV Activism, HIV Prevention and Care Project, Stigma

HIV Friendly raises awareness regarding HIV in Pennsylvania

December 10, 2025 administrator Leave a comment

A new state-wide program seeks to raise awareness and build HIV Friendly communities.

Created by the HIV Prevention and Care Project at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Public Health, HIV Friendly serves as an educational campaign designed to increase awreness and to share resources regarding HIV. To register for an HIV Friendly presentation, visit the HIV Friendly registration page.

Participants who attend an HIV Friendly presentation will learn the basics of HIV, identify the ways in which stigma and discrimination negatively impact people living with HIV, and learn how to create inclusive, HIV Friendly communities for all Pennsylvanians.

Find out more at HIVfriendlyPA.com.

Education, Events, HIV

“Healthy Aging with HIV” Series and Healthy Aging Hub

December 4, 2025 administrator Leave a comment

Accredited program will support providers, peers, and advocates with structured learning on healthy aging with HIV.

From HealthHIV.org…

As we continue to commemorate World AIDS Day, HealthHIV is launching the new “Healthy Aging with HIV” series. This accredited learning series explores what it means to age with HIV, connecting science with lived experience and everyday practice. It is a tool for providers, case managers, peer navigators, and advocates to learn about the intersection of medical knowledge with workforce readiness, social determinants of health, and supportive care systems.

The five H modules of the series—Horizon, Heart, Head, Hand, and Healing—cover real-world issues like social determinants of health, long-term care, workforce readiness, and stigma reduction. Much like the “5 M’s” of Geriatrics (Mind, Mobility, Medications, Multicomplexity, and What Matters Most) provide a framework for age-friendly healthcare, the Healthy Aging with HIV series gives learners a structured way to understand the lived realities People Aging with HIV experience.

The modules in the series are:

Introduction Module – Healthy Aging with HIV
Module 1 – Horizon: Fulfilling the Promise of Healthy Aging with HIV
Module 2 – Heart: Cardiovascular Health and Everyday Risks
Module 3 – Head: Cognitive Health, Mental Well-Being, and Emotional Resilience
Module 4 – Hand: Building Stronger Care Teams and Support Systems
Module 5 – Healing: Mobility, Medication, and Thriving with Aging

Find out more at HealthHIV.org.

Events, HIV, News and Information

World AIDS Day 2025: Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response

December 1, 2025 administrator Leave a comment

From the World Health Organization…

On 1 December WHO joins partners and communities to commemorate World AIDS Day 2025, under the theme “Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response“, calling for sustained political leadership, international cooperation, and human-rights-centred approaches to end AIDS by 2030.

After decades of progress, the HIV response stands at a crossroads. Life-saving services are being disrupted, and many communities face heightened risks and vulnerabilities. Yet amid these challenges, hope endures in the determination, resilience, and innovation of communities who strive to end AIDS.

Learn more.

HIV, HIV care, Research

HIV and Your Brain

November 24, 2025 administrator Leave a comment

From POZ online…

In the early years of the epidemic, neurological problems—dubbed neuro-AIDS—were a major concern. HIV can damage the brain directly, and several opportunistic infections can cause neurological symptoms. According to some estimates, as many as half of all people with AIDS developed debilitating brain problems.

Today, severe neurological manifestations of HIV are less common thanks to effective antiretroviral treatment. Nonetheless, people living with the virus may experience more subtle neurological and cognitive problems, collectively known as HIV-related neurocognitive disorder (HAND). Even when viral load is undetectable, HIV can cause chronic immune activation and inflammation that take a toll on the brain. What’s more, the aging HIV population is prone to the neurocognitive decline that comes with advancing age.

It is unclear how many people are affected by HAND. Studies have produced widely varying estimates, in part because they use different definitions of the condition. But we know that HIV-related neurocognitive problems are more common among people with uncontrolled virus and advanced immune suppression, as indicated by a low CD4 T-cell count.

Read the full article.

HIV, HIV care

HIV Drug Resistance

November 3, 2025 administrator Leave a comment

From POZ Magazine online…

Drug resistance refers to the ability of viruses or bacteria to continue multiplying despite the presence of drugs that usually disable or kill them. In the case of HIV, drug resistance occurs when the virus develops mutations, or changes in its genetic code. These changes alter HIV proteins—including the reverse transcriptase, protease and integrase enzymes the virus uses to replicate—in ways that reduce susceptibility to drugs.

Inadequately treated HIV replicates rapidly and can quickly develop mutations that confer drug resistance. Sometimes resistance mutations can make an entire class of drugs ineffective. Certain antiretroviral classes have a higher barrier to resistance, meaning they are less likely to stop working. For example, some meds require more mutations to compromise their effectiveness, and others bind to the virus in such a way that they can keep working even as the virus mutates. As a class, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NNRTIs) have a lower barrier to resistance, while protease inhibitors and integrase inhibitors have a higher barrier to resistance.

Read the full article.